Sherrill Neeland Kirk, 84, was born October 28, 1940, in Greensboro, Alabama to the late Perry Neeland Kirk and Estelle Johnson Kirk. Sherrill passed away peacefully on Friday, December 13, 2024, at his daughters’ home with his wife, daughter and grandsons by his side. He is preceded in death by his parents and two brothersin- law, David Clarence Ryan and John William Ryan. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Linda Ryan Kirk, daughter, Lea Elizabeth Kirk Luker, and two grandsons, Neeland Ryan Luker and David Perry Luker.
Funeral services will be held Friday, December 20, 2024, at Marion Methodist Church, in Marion, Alabama, at 12:00 noon with Reverend Len Hurston officiating. The family will receive friends at the church from 10:00 a.m. to noon. Graveside services will be at 2:30 at Oakwood Cemetery in Greensboro, Alabama, where his parents are laid to rest. Active pallbearers will be George Crawford, John William Ryan, Jr., Chester Hogue, John Anderson, III (John John), Randy Matthews, Will Stewart, Larsen Simmons, Bobby Gray, Mike Black, Don Boyle, and Steve Kirk. Kirk Funeral Homes Marion Chapel will be directing.
Sherrill graduated from Greensboro High School in 1959. After graduating high school, he worked at Spigener Brown Service Funeral Home in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He then moved to Tennessee and attended Gupton Jones School of Mortuary Science on the Vanderbilt University Campus. He married Linda Ryan on June 21, 1964, while being employed by Anderson Brown Service Funeral Home in Marion, Alabama. He worked for Mr. and Mrs. Walter Anderson from 1963 to 1965. Linda and Sherrill then moved to the Mobile area to work at a funeral home until 1967. They both became homesick so they moved home. On August 3, 1967, they purchased Anderson Brown Service Funeral Home from the Andersons in Marion. From this date until the date he died, Sherrill followed his dreams and passions. His dedication and love for this profession, his business and all of the families, in general, allowed him to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground so he could be the best he could be for families in their darkest times.
Sherrill was very active in the Marion community, including being a member of the Lions Club, Army National Guard, and the Jaycees, where he received Citizen of the Year Award. Sherrill was also active in every aspect of Southern Academy, including being President of the Board for two years and volunteering to make sure that projects needing to be done were completed by contributing both physically as well as financially. It gave him great joy to see his daughter graduate from Southern in 1993 and even more joy to have been able to see his grandsons attend Southern.
After joining Marion United Methodist Church in 1967, Linda and Sherrill were very active members, rearing their daughter in Christian values and morals. Sherrill was on the Board at the church where he served many decades.
While physically able, Sherrill spent a lot of his down time on the golf course at Marion Military Institute. He was so proud of the fact that his daughter at age 7 taught him the game. Before that he had never played. He bragged to everyone about how a 7- year-old could teach an old man golf. Those years playing together…WERE EVERYTHING. Sherrill was a hands on, devoted, and loving father, husband and friend. All of Elizabeth’s friends adored him because they knew he would always load them up in his suburban and take them anywhere they needed to go. Although Sherrill worked long days and long nights, he rarely ever missed a function, church event, school event, play, basketball game, football game, ballet or voice recital. Sherrill always put others in front of himself. He loved his family, church, community, country and most importantly his wife, Linda Ryan Kirk, his daughter, Lea Elizabeth, and grandsons, Neeland Ryan Luker and David Perry Luker.
Because of his chosen profession, Sherrill realized that each individual family was his primary focus of attention during their time of need. The world has lost a great man but his legacy, in his thousands of jokes and stories he told people to get a smile, will live on forever.
