Carolyn “Sue” Herdy (nee Yopp) died surrounded by her children in Friday Harbor on September 21 due to complications from lung cancer. Sue was 85.

Sue was born the third of nine children on November 30, 1932, in Paducah, Kentucky, to Edward and Lucille Yopp. She graduated from St. Mary’s Academy in Paducah in 1952, and from Webster College in St. Louis, Missouri in 1956, where she completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics. In 1956, Sue married Joseph R. Herdy, Sr., also of Paducah. Upon marrying, Sue and Joe moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where Sue took her first teaching job, keeping a tight rein over her class of 40 first graders. In 1961, Sue and Joe moved back to Paducah, where they lived for many years until their retirement in 2000.

Sue was proud of completing her Master of Arts degree in Education in from Murray State University in 1975. In addition to her years of experience teaching elementary and high school students, Sue also became a reading specialist and tutored children with learning disabilities. In 1978, Sue was devastated to learn she had Meniere’s Disease, a condition which caused her near-constant vertigo. Meniere’s slowed Sue down but didn’t stop her completely, as she went on to hone her cooking and craft-making skills to award winning levels at the Kentucky State Fair and DuQuoin State Fair.

Sue is survived by her son J. Roger Herdy, Jr., of Huntsville, Alabama, her daughter Sarah (Sally) Macke of St. Louis, Missouri, her daughter Amy Herdy of Friday Harbor, eleven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. She was preceded in death by her husband Joseph R. Herdy, Sr. and her son Dreux Herdy.

A funeral mass celebrating Sue’s life will be held at Saint Thomas More Church in Paducah in November and the burial will take place immediately afterward at Mount Carmel Cemetery.