Louis F Sherrer

Louis Francis Sherrer, 93, of Charleston, SC, passed away on Thursday, October 22, 2015. He was born on Saturday, November 5, 1921 in Macon, GA, the son of the late William H Sherrer and the late Jessie Vogel Sherrer. Louis was a graduate of Lanier High School in Macon, and attended the College of Charleston. He then went to work for his uncle, Jim Sherrer, at Ashley Ice Cream Co., as a route driver. When the company was sold, he went to work for Augusta Dairies in Augusta, GA for one year as a route supervisor. He then returned to Charleston as a route supervisor for Purity Ice Cream, where he worked until he was drafted by the United States Marine Corps. He started as most Marine recruits at Parris Island in Beaufort, and then went to the Marine Corps Base in Cherry Point, NC, and was assigned to drive amphibian tractors with the 8th Amtrac Battalion Associates. From North Carolina, he was assigned to Camp Pendleton, CA, traveling cross-country via a “troop train”, which carried both the troops and equipment. The troop was then assigned to Guadalcanal during World War II, which was a two week trip via ship. His unit then served in various areas off the coast of Japan, including Puvuvu Base, Okinawa and Kimoshima. When the war ended, he was discharged and returned to Charleston and his job at Purity Ice Cream. In the early 1950’s, he met his future wife, Maria, who was working as a waitress/cook at Pete’s Diner on King Street, where he became a regular customer, eating there daily until he could get up enough courage to ask Maria out. But, instead of asking her for a real date, he asked her to go with him to Mass on Easter Sunday, and then out to breakfast. They continued their Sunday Mass and breakfast dates, and were married in Macon, GA, on June 19, 1952. In early 1959, Louis saw an ad in the classified section of the newspaper from a moving company owner in North Carolina who was interested in opening a branch in Charleston, and Louis responded his interest in that venture. He took Maria (now pregnant with their third child) to Fayetteville for three months, while he learned all about the moving business. He returned to Charleston, and in June of 1959, opened Charleston Moving & Storage Co., where he worked with his children until it was sold in 2012. Louis was a past member of the Movers Association of Charleston and the South Carolina Movers Conference, where he served on the Board of Directors, and was named “South Carolina Household Mover of the Year” in 1984. He was an active member of St. Joseph Catholic Church, where he served as a reader for 35 years, and was named “Volunteer of the Month” in January, 2009. Besides his parents, Louis is preceded in death by his wife, Maria Roels Sherrer, his sister, Jessie Sherrer; and granddaughter, Tracy Scott. He is survived by one son, Jim Sherrer and his wife, Abby, of Charleston, SC; two daughters: Betty Ann Scott and her husband, Winfield, of Charleston, SC and Linda Myzell and her husband, Eddie, of Ridgeville, SC; two grandsons: Ryan Sherrer and his wife, Cheryl, of Charleston, SC and Alexander Kirby of Charleston, SC; two granddaughters: Ashley Blackwell and her husband, Travis, of Mt. Pleasant, SC and Lauren Kirby of Charleston, SC; and one great-granddaughter, Brook Blackwell of Mt. Pleasant, SC. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00am on Monday, October 26, 2015, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1695 Wallenberg Blvd., Charleston, SC 29407, with Rev. Gabriel Smith officiating. Burial will follow in the Live Oak Memorial Gardens Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Joseph Catholic Church, Major Capital Improvement Fund, 1695 Wallenberg Blvd., Charleston, SC 29407. Expressions of sympathy may be viewed or submitted online at www.mcalister-smith.com. Arrangements have been entrusted to McALISTER-SMITH FUNERAL HOME WEST ASHLEY CHAPEL, 2501 Bees Ferry Road, Charleston, SC 29414, 843-722-8371.