Maude Lindsey Herrell

July 11, 1924 - December 13, 2020

Minnie Maude Varnell Lindsey-Herrell went to be with the Lord at the age of 96 on Sunday, December 13, 2020. A lifelong resident of Piedmont, she was one of 11 children to Ben and Daisy Varnell. Maude touched the lives of many Jefferson Countians through her thirty-year career in the Jefferson County School Food Service program. She retired in 1986 from the Jefferson County High School Cafeteria following previous service in the lunchrooms at Jefferson and Piedmont Elementary Schools. In addition to her cooking in the school system, Maude was well known by family and friends for her hearty and delicious farm-based fare. She parlayed her cooking skills to appearances at the County Fair and many local festivals where her homemade fried pies quickly sold-out. The apex of her cooking fame came in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when she made several appearances on WBIR’s The Heartland Series hosted by Bill Landry. The episode featuring her Apple Stack Cake remains a perennial favorite during the holidays. Preceded in death by her devoted husbands Mack Lindsey and Carl M. Lindsey, Maude is survived by her loyal husband of 23 years, Lynn Herrell. She is also survived by sons Louis (Juretta) Lindsey and Ronald (Shirley) Lindsey of Valdosta, Georgia. Maude brought to her marriage to Lynn grandchildren Suzanne Lindsey Helton, of Murfreesboro; Tim Lindsey; Michael (Nourith) Lindsey, of Israel: Mark (Hayden) Lindsey, of North Carolina; and Jeff (Ginnie) Lindsey, as well as 19 great-grandchildren. She was warmly embraced by the Herrell family who made her one of their own and is survived by step-daughters Janice (Richard) Larrance and Rena (Roy Denton) Herrell, of Knoxville. Also surviving are step-granddaughters LaTonya (Mike) Daniels and Jocelyn (James) Rauhuff, of Georgia, as well as 5 step-great grandchildren. Additionally, Maude is survived by her sister, Wilma Ellison, and several nieces and nephews. A special thank-you is owed her niece Phyllis Register for her time and attentiveness toward Maude in her later years. Well-deserved appreciation from the family also goes out to the team at Jefferson Park at Dandridge who provided her exceptional care during the last few years of her life. Graveside service 3:00 PM Saturday, December 19, 2020, at Flat Gap Cemetery with Dr. Jeff Lindsey officiating. She will lie in state from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm Saturday at Fielden Funeral Home in New Market.