Sheila Adrian Gwin

Sheila Adrian Gwin passed away unexpectedly last week. She was preceded in death by her parents, Dr. John V. Gwin and Catherine Larkin Gwin. A passionate advocate for animal rights, over the years Sheila took numerous animals into her home. She fed them, provided medical care and loved them while attempting to find permanent homes for these forgotten animals. Her devotion to animal rescue had no limits. During Hurricane Katrina she not only went to the Gulf Coast and assisted in rescue, she rescued several dogs, brought them to her home and made them part of her family. As a native to Laurel, Sheila was very active during High School at RH Watkins, graduating in 1969. Music and tennis were her forte and she excelled at these events. After graduation she attended LSU as a music major. In addition, she attended University of Southern Mississippi and Northwestern University in Chicago. These college pursuits were to allow her to follow her dream to move to NYC. True to her dream she arrived in NYC following college and lived there for many years. During her tenure in the Big Apple she worked as an Assistant Producer for CBS news 60 Minutes. Later she moved to Washington DC and continued work in television with ABC. Due to the poor health of her parents, Sheila came home to Laurel to care for John and Catherine. Again she demonstrated her generous and unselfish heart. After her parents passed away she decided to stay in Laurel and continued work as a Paralegal. She is survived by her brother, Dan Gwin and sister-in-law, Diane Gwin, nephew, Jason Gwin and wife Jennifer Gwin, grand- nieces Breanna Tolbert and Aubry Rose Gwin, all of Laurel. She is survived by her sister, Eileen Gwin Austin and husband Jay Austin of Montrose, Colorado and nephew Jay Austin Jr and wife Jingran Wang Austin and son Tenne SiJing Austin, of Stockholm, Sweden. There are numerous relatives across the country and friends who shared Sheila’s friendship. The family would like to thank everyone for their kind words and remembrances. In lieu of flowers the family requests that memorial donations be made to the Southern Cross Animal Rescue or to the Animal Rescue League of Laurel or Shelter of your choice. Please join us for a Celebration of Sheila’s life this Saturday, September 3 from 10 am to 1 pm at The Hitchin’ Poste/ Cajun Kitchen, 1707 Hwy 184 East in Laurel.

Sheila Adrian Gwin

August 23, 1951 - August 23, 2016