Shirley Herbig

Shirley (Shade) Pollen-Herbig passed away the evening of Sunday, Dec 4 with her two daughters by her side. Shirley was placed in hospice at River Bluff Nursing Home following a recent diagnosis of liver cancer, not long after her 92nd birthday.

Shirley was the daughter of Gladys (Yoder) Schoenhardt and Robert Shade. Born Oct 20, 1930, she grew up on American St in Freeport with her brother Roger (deceased), sister Betty (deceased) and numerous relatives in the area. She became a long-time resident of Pecatonica, where she married Richard Pollen (deceased) in 1939 and raised three daughters Patricia (James) Guffey of Winnebago, Kathleen Erickson (deceased), and Connie (Ed) Long of Freeport.

Before retirement, Shirley worked at the MicroSwitch plant in Freeport for 26 years. Shirley had a life-long passion for fishing, and shared this family tradition with her children, five grandchildren, and six great grandchildren. Many can recall seeing her white car at the Pec River and Four Lakes. She was also proud of her Irish heritage and loved celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with corn beef and cabbage, blarney gifts, and dressing from head to toe in green with a red wig. She was a devoted Christian that had a generous soul, always giving what she could to others in need. She loved the simple things in life- McDonald’s coffee, reading the Freeport Journal Standard, playing the lottery and bingo, and Friday night fish fries.

Shirley is survived by her daughters, Pat and Connie, grandchildren Jeremy (Jennifer) Guffey, Susan Wagner, Jessica Guffey, Stephanie Wagner, and Jake (Megan) Guffey, and great grandchildren Jayden, Jayger, Grace, Griffin, Kyah, and Julian.

She always kept her family in her heart, including those we have lost in earlier years. She was like a second mother to her late sister Betty Hadju’s children, and remained close to her late husband’s family (The Pollens). She is also survived by so many loving cousins, nieces, and nephews near and far, whose lives she touched with her fantastic story telling and thoughtful letters.

Her family would like to spend a special thank you to those that served as her extended care team over the past few years— Dr. Jon Strutzenberg and the staff at the Winnebago Clinic, Nurse Toni Brown and the staff at the River Bluff Nursing Home, her niece Joann Jakowlew and son Brent, neighbor and special friend Joe Buss, her landscaper Brian Lameyer, and her daughter Pat who lovingly served as her weekly caregiver. The care and attention you provided enabled her to live independently to 92, and allowed us to continue making memories together, and for that we are forever grateful.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to her daughter Kathy’s favorite charity, Friends Forever Humane Society of Freeport, or the Rockford Rescue Mission.

A memorial ceremony will be held at 11:00 a.m., on Friday, December 16, 2022 at the Pecatonica United Methodist Church at 528 Washington St. A visitation will be held at 10:00 a.m. that morning preceding the memorial ceremony. A burial will take place at Pecatonica Cemetery following the memorial ceremony.