A bright light in our family has been extinguished. Longtime Lewiston resident Sylvia Ann Williams passed away Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019, from complications of pulmonary fibrosis. She was 85 years old.
Our mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister and dear aunt was born April 3, 1934, in Cottonwood, to Rudolph and Eva (Kinzer) Herzog. The third of 11 children, Sylvia grew up in Ferdinand, attended local schools and had a passion for basketball, cheerleading and dancing, before graduating from Ferdinand High School in 1952.
Sylvia moved to Lewiston after graduation and worked at the Potlatch Forests Inc. mill (now Clearwater Paper), where she became the head night cook. It was there that she met her future husband, Dan Williams. Dan and Sylvia were married Jan. 2, 1954, in Ferdinand.
The couple lived in Lewiston, where their daughter, Barbara, was born in 1956. In 1967, after Dan graduated from Lewis-Clark State College and obtained his teaching certificate, the family moved to Burns, Ore., where Dan began his teaching career. They later moved to Caldwell, where Sylvia became Canyon County welfare director. She retired in 1996, but discovered that she didn’t like the solitude of retirement and went back to work at the welfare office until retiring, permanently, at age 70.
After traveling extensively in the United States and Europe, Sylvia and Dan relocated to Lewiston in 2005. Sylvia nursed her husband through a long battle with cancer until he died in 2015. They had been married for more than 60 years. Sylvia then survived her own bout with lung cancer before being struck with pulmonary fibrosis, but she never allowed health challenges to dampen her spirit nor sour her attitude toward life. Everyone in the family knew that Sylvia “wanted to live to be 100 years old,” and she lived each day with a smile and a bright, sunny outlook.
Sylvia volunteered two days a week at the Valley Community Center in Clarkston, and she also enjoyed having lunch with friends at the Lewiston Community Center. She loved cards and played regularly. Although the stakes were small, Sylvia had a competitive streak and cringed at the very idea of losing, but always did so with a smile.
Sylvia was a lifelong devoted Catholic, and was most recently a member of All Saints Catholic Church in Lewiston. She also belonged to the Women of All Saints and was a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10043 Auxiliary.
She is survived by her daughter Barbara (Doug) Swanson, of Tigard, Ore.; granddaughter Lauren (Vadim) Akolzina and great-granddaughter Olga Akolzina, of Beaverton, Ore.; sisters Lorraine Young, of Lewiston, Jennie Nuxoll, of Grangeville, Mary Jo (George) Arnone, of Sparks, Nev., Gladys Jacobsen, of Nehalem, Ore., and Dorothy (Tony) Lasher, of Germantown, Ill.; brother David (Pam) Herzog, of Craigmont; sister-in-law Doris Herzog, of Lewiston; 22 nieces and nephews; and many extended family members and dear friends, including Bill and Franki Hubbard. She was eagerly awaiting the birth of her great-grandson in May, the first boy to be born into the family in three generations.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Dan; brothers Dean, James and William “Bill” Herzog; sister Lillian Dykes; two brothers-in-law; and two nephews.
A service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at Malcom’s Brower-Wann Funeral Home, 1711 18th St., Lewiston.
Sylvia was a true storyteller and the unofficial family historian. She frequently told stories of her early life, and those of her two older sisters, growing up in Ferdinand. If you have a story about Sylvia, please join the family at the service Monday.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Sylvia’s memory to All Saints Catholic Church, or a charity of your choice.
Sylvia met life’s health challenges with a smile, an uplifting spirit and an iron will. She fought a mighty struggle. Her family is deeply saddened by her loss, but remains strong in the knowledge that Sylvia now sits with her savior, whole, complete and healthy again. We miss her already.
Service Information
- Date & Time
- Monday, December 30, 11:00 AM
- Location
-
Malcom's Brower-Wann Funeral Home
1711 18th Street
Lewiston, ID 83501
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1711 18th Street