Jeff and Sherry Liddell named Hill City Prevailer News Citizens of the Year

Assets in the church. Assets to the community. Assets to Hill City.
These are the words used to describe the Hill City Prevailer News Citizen(s) of the Year—Sherry and Jeff Liddell.
The Liddells came to Hill City in the fall of 2016.  
“We are very blessed that they picked us,” says Mary Larson who serves with Sherry in the Xi Alpha Chi sorority. “There is nothing they won’t do for someone.”
Larson is not the only person to have that exact sentiment about the Liddells.
Little White Church Pastor Dennis Siebert says Jeff and Sherry are great people,  “embedded to serve.”
Both Larson and Siebert list off all the many ways in which Sherry and Jeff have been involved. The purse project, game night fundraisers, wrapping gifts for the Gifts from the Heart Project, opening up their home for church groups or events, fixing things, greeting people at the door, or even offering rides to or from the airport.
“One time a few of us got a motel,” Siebert said. “We were flying out at four in the morning and Sherry asked the question, ‘why on earth did you do that? We would have taken you.’”
Siebert says jokingly they almost resented the fact that he hadn’t asked them.
Sherry and Jeff came to Hill City after retiring from positions in Texas. Sherry was an executive assistant to a vice president at INEOS and Jeff was a manager on the floor of a refinery at ExxonMobil.
Siebert says Jeff uses those work skills in all sorts of capacities to help church members.
“He can do most anything. He picks up jobs. It’s what he likes to do. There’s a bulletin board at the church  ‘see a need, fill a need’ and Jeff is constantly doing just that,” he said.
Siebert says Jeff has helped on projects from tiling to a “major renovation of a rotting floor.”
Most say Sherry’s talent is her gracious demeanor.
“Sherry has a natural bent for hospitality, inviting people into their beautiful home in the Hills, making them feel welcome and loved, talking with them, interjecting the conversation with her infectious laugh,” said Carol Walker, who attends church with the Liddells and has worked with Sherry on creating promotional articles for the Xi Alpha Chi sorority. Walker adds that Sherry’s heart is as “big as her former state.”
“She’s got the most contagious laugh you ever want to hear,” agrees Rebecca Schindler, who serves on the activities committee of the Hill City Senior Citizens (HCSC) alongside Liddell. “She’s just upbeat all the time. She’s wonderful to work with, very easy to work with, very accommodating.”
Liddell was “instrumental” in planning and helping with the HCSC’s 50th Anniversary Celebration in October.
“She’s on so many committees. It just amazes me that she can manage to juggle that many balls in the air at one time. She’s wonderful,” said Schindler.
Schindler added that Liddell has been an active member in her fitness classes since coming to town, and for the last two years, Liddell has gone out of her way to organize a class Christmas gift for Schindler.
Almost everyone speaks of Sherry’s smile and drawl.
“Sherry is part of the greeter team,” says Siebert. “She loves to meet people at the door. She makes sure they find what they need. She always does so with a beaming smile and a pure delight. That  Texas accent is such a welcome.”
Ranger Square board president Bob Lowrey  says “her south Texas drawl is really hard to miss in a crowd. You will always know she is there by her drawl.”
Sherry is the treasurer of the Ranger Square Board.
“I’ve enjoyed working with her on the Ranger Square board. If you have a job for her to do she tackles it with enthusiasm,” Lowrey said. “She is a contributor and is willing to work hard to make good things happen for Hill City. She understands people well and thus is very good at working with a variety of people.”
Another quality people notice right away is Sherry’s ability to  remember people and form connections. Siebert says “she meets you and never forgets who you are.”
When Siebert first came to Hill City he was struck by how well Sherry remembered people’s names, saying “one of her gifts is to really know people and the things that are important to them. She can have a hundred things on her mind and be doing multiple things at once but she can set it all aside and give you the attention and it’s genuine.”
In addition to her roles in the Little White Church, her local sorority, Ranger Square and the Hill City Senior Citizens Sherry is the former Hill City Arts Council Board president.
Sherry stepped into that role at a “pivotal time in the organization” according to Twila Morris.
“Lots of change in members and officers was taking place and she stepped up to the challenge. Sherry led a new group of officers with a goal to update, organize and improve the Hill City Arts Council’s mission, vision, and impact on the community,” Morris said. “Under Sherry’s Leadership, Live on Stage was born—a whole new format was implemented and more money than ever was raised for Hill City high school senior scholarships.”
Sherry was also a leader in restructuring the Sculpture in the Hills show and sale, says Morris.
“The event was renamed to Fine Arts in the Hills to pull in a very diverse group of fine art,” she said. “The changes made led to a comeback of the event. Sherry continued her leadership, commitment and volunteerism by helping the arts council finish the year with two more successful events, the Hill City Quilt Show & the Black Hills Plein Air Paint Out. Sherry was instrumental in taking the Hill City Arts Council to new heights that benefited Hill City greatly.”
In 2024 Sherry will again become a leader of a Hill City organization, moving from secretary to president of the Hill City Evergreen Garden Club. Outgoing president Gail McKane says she has no doubt “the club will greatly benefit from her energy and leadership.”
“When describing Sherry, the first words that come to mind are energy, enthusiasm and commitment,” McKane said. “It is obvious to anyone who knows Sherry how deeply committed she is to the community of Hill City; and like the Energizer Bunny, Sherry is always prepared to share ideas and to jump in and help. All of these qualities have been a tremendous asset to the Hill City Evergreen Garden Club.
“In addition to handling the duties of secretary, she has helped with the many projects the club undertakes each year, including the flower show and wreath project.”
Like so many behind the scenes people in Hill City the Liddells lead very private lives. Sherry’s hobbies include kayaking, reading, gardening, photography and cooking. Larson said Liddell is a magnificent cook. She also lets people in on one of the most unique things about Sherry, that she thinks is brilliant.
“She has a whole closet/room dedicated to her decorated Christmas tree,” she said. “She knew it was one feature she wanted in her home in Hill City. That’s what she had in her office in Texas.”
The room allows Sherry to keep her Christmas tree decorated all year, pulling it out, fluffing its branches and plugging it in for the holiday.
While that secret is now out, those that  have come to know the Liddells are no secret to their warmth, hospitality and genuine community spirit.