Jerolene "Jeri" Kay Herpel

Jerolene “Jeri” Kay Herpel of Birch Run, Michigan

Beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend, passed away unexpectedly at her home on Sunday, July 20, 2025. She was 79 years old. Jerolene Kay Bergquist was born on May 30, 1946, in Davison, Michigan, to the late Jerold and Leona (Ettinger) Bergquist. She was a graduate of Davison High School. Jeri was proudly employed as one of the first female letter carriers with the United States Postal Service, serving many years of loyal and dedicated service. The role she loved and cherished the most was to be a loving and devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She loved her children deeply, but her grandchildren made her heart feel full and life complete. Jeri was a member of the Birch Run Moose Lodge #2142. An excellent pool player, she was a “Tri-Cities Billiards Champion” competing regularly throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s. Jeri had a green thumb and enjoyed spending time caring for her vegetables, as well as tending to her beautiful flower gardens. She was an avid reader and quilter, creating many baby quilts over the years. Jeri was also an excellent cook, especially steak dinners. She often showed her love by preparing meals for those she loved. Though she could be fiercely independent and a little stubborn, she will forever be remembered for her love for wisdom and learning new things, for spending time in nature and collecting leaves, for her selflessness and kindness to anyone in need, and for truly living an amazing life filled with many wonderful memories and stories.

Surviving are five children: Pamela “Jill” (Daniel deceased) Dickerson of Saginaw; David “Chip” Christle of OH; Heather Daniels of PA; Jerimy (Erin Michelle) Herpel of Farmington Hills; Amber (Rob White) Herpel of Howell; 16 grandchildren; 17 great-grandchildren; a brother, Tom (Jane) Bergquist of Flint; a sister, Ruth Matthews of FL; a sister-in-law, Judy Berquist of Cadillac. Also surviving are many nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family, and dear friends.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Theodore Herpel; granddaughter, Cindy Marie Lynn; a great-grandson, Thomas Christopher Dickerson; father, Gerald (Frances) Berquist; mother, Leona Wolf; and five brothers: Wayne, Roger, Jim, Bobby, and Conrad.

A funeral service will take place at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 26, 2025, at the W. L. Case and Company Funeral Directors, 5700 Dixie Highway, Saginaw, MI 48601. Pastor Jim Doran will officiate. Burial will follow at Richland Township Cemetery in Prescott, Michigan. Friends are welcome to visit with the family at the funeral chapel on Friday from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until the time of the service. Please share your thoughts and memories with the family at the funeral home or through www.casefuneralhome.com.