HELEN MACLEAN SHERBENOU

1920 - 2011

Helen Maclean Sherbenou, 90, of DeKalb, Ill., died Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011, at Oak Crest DeKalb Area Retirement Center.
Born Nov. 28, 1920, in Leon, Kan., to John Lester and Olive Pearl (Doughty) Maclean, she was the oldest of four children, with siblings John, Jim and Mary preceding her in death. After graduating from Leon High School and attending junior college in Eldorado, Kan., she attended Wesley Hospital School of Nursing in Wichita, Kan., graduating with honors in 1942. She worked in Wichita as a nurse and surgical assistant, living with roommates who became life-long friends. When the war ended, she enrolled at Kansas University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in microbiology.
While at KU, she met her husband-to-be, Edgar L. "Vern" Sherbenou. They were married Aug. 24, 1947, at her parents' home in Leon, Kan., on a day so hot that the candles melted without being lit. They had two sons, Edgar Vern and Jerre Wyn. Living in Lawrence, Kan., and Houston, Texas, they finally settled in DeKalb in 1959. As her children grew older, she practiced nursing in both hospital and clinical settings, and attended NIU School of Nursing. As one of the school's first Masters Candidates, she received her degree in 1969 and joined the faculty as a nursing instructor. During her career, she was active in professional organizations and civic service. Professionally, she was president of the Illinois Nurses Association, active in the American Nurses Association and Sigma Theta Tau, the Honor Society of Nursing.
Civically, she and Vern were founding members of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb and dedicated life-long members; she served on the DeKalb County Board of Health; and served a long time on the Board of Barb City Manor. In 1978, accompanying Vern to Thailand on his Fulbright Scholarship, Helen started a program with the local nursing professionals of clinical care and vaccination for the rural villages around Ching Mai. She retired from NIU in 1989 and enjoyed traveling and family and friends.
She is survived by both sons, Ed (wife, Joan) and Jerre; and six grandchildren, Ed's sons, Tim, Kyle and Brad, and Jerre's children, Alyce, Evelyn and Chris.
She was predeceased by her husband, Vern, in 2007.
A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 21, at Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb, 158 N. Fourth St., DeKalb, IL 60115, with the Rev. Linda Slabon officiating. Helen has been cremated and her ashes will be interred in Afton Cemetery, as arranged by Anderson Funeral Home, DeKalb.
In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to UUFD in her name.
For information, visit www.AndersonFuneralHomeLtd.com or call 815-756-1022.