Sydney Herrick (27) of Louisville

Sydney Herrick, 27, of Louisville died on Sunday morning, August 21, 2016 after a courageous battle with cancer.

A memorial service will be held at 10:00 am Wednesday, August 24 at Frank and Bright Funeral Home in Flora with burial in Iola Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5-7pm Tuesday. Memorials to the Feral Cat Fund of the Effingham County Humane Society or to Clay County Hospice.

Online condolences may be left by clicking here 

Sydney Herrick was born July 7, 1989, in Springfield, Illinois. She graduated from North Clay High School and attended Lakeland College where she received a Graphic Design Certificate.  She attended Red Brush Christian Church in Louisville and was a former member of Oak Street Baptist Church in Flora.  She was the cherished daughter to William (Bill) and Sherry Herrick of Louisville, Illinois, and the loving sister to Seth Herrick of Marion, Illinois. Her godparents were Denise and Chuck Hall of St. Louis, Missouri.

Sydney had a special bond with animals, especially cats, and would do anything to make her favorites like Mo, her cat, happy. She was an avid volunteer at the Effingham County Humane Shelter, enjoying routine visits – and the furry residents loved her! A Feral Cat Care Fund in honor of Sydney Herrick was recently established by the shelter.  Sydney liked tackling large jigsaw puzzles, framing many of them to display in her room, along with hundreds of other collectibles she accumulated over the years herself and those that were given to her by family and friends. She liked to play the piano and to read and listen to music as evidenced by her book and CD collections. As a teen she wrote poetry and was very creative. Sydney absolutely loved Christmas, carefully decorating the tree and house with treasures collected each year. She was usually the first in the family to have her shopping done, anxiously awaiting the big day! Always enjoying her brother Seth’s company, she liked watching and going to movies with him. And she was a fierce competitor when it came to playing table and card games with the family!

Sydney is survived by her parents and brother, along with uncles and aunts: Barry Martin of Edgewater, Florida; Dan and Lee Martin of Decatur, Illinois; Jim and Erma Herrick of Iola, Illinois; thirteen first cousins living in Illinois, Missouri, and Tennessee along with sixteen second/third cousins in Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana.

She was preceded in death by her maternal grandparents, Bill and Beverly Martin of Edgewater, Florida, formerly of Flora, Illinois; paternal grandparents, Harris and Martha Herrick of Iola, Illinois; aunts and uncles, Marceline and Raymond Williamson of Louisville, Illinois, Jackie and Bob Allen and Joan and Curt Savage, all of Iola, Illinois; and first cousin, Jeff Herrick, of Macomb, Illinois.