Dr. Allison "Allie" Herschel

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Dr. Allison “Allie” Renee Herschel, 28, peacefully ended her long struggle with mental illness and anorexia nervosa on July 21, 2018, in Columbia.

Allie was born on Nov. 23, 1989, in Youngstown, to James and Breanna (Speedy) Herschel.

She grew up in Austintown and Canfield and attended the Immaculate Heart of Mary School, St. Christine School, and Cardinal Mooney High School. While in high school, her family moved to South Bend, Ind., and she graduated early in January 2008 in order to join them and attend Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Ind. She later transferred to the University of Notre Dame, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Science-Business in 2011, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude. While a student at Notre Dame, Allie worked as an assistant to the Director of Operations for the Women’s Basketball Program for two seasons.

Following her passion to help others, Allie continued her education earning a Master of Science in Global Health from the University of Notre Dame in 2012. She then attended the Indiana University School of Medicine, where she earned her Doctor of Medicine in 2016. While in medical school, Allie helped found the Navari Student Outreach Clinic, delivering free health care to the uninsured and underserved members of the South Bend, community. She was the first recipient of the clinic’s Joseph H. Cerbin, M.D. award for outstanding student contribution.

Allie completed her transitional year residency at Grand Strand Medical Center in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and was a current resident in the Palmetto Health/University of South Carolina Preventive Medicine Residency in Columbia.

Allie loved to babysit, walks on the beach, Disney World, Sunday crosswords with her family, Notre Dame Women’s Basketball, good books, jigsaw puzzles and the family dogs. She also loved to help people and volunteered her time at many organizations, including Habitat for Humanity, St. Joseph County Public Library, Hannah’s House, and at Notre Dame where she volunteered with First Aid Services and served as a commissioner for the Bookstore Basketball Tournament.

Allie will be missed by her parents, James and Breanna Herschel and brothers Brett, Daniel and Kyle Herschel, all of South Bend; her maternal grandmother, Esther Carnahan, of Austintown; her great-aunt, Sister Isabel Rudge, OSU, of Canfield; her aunt, Mary Ann Herschel, of Austintown; her aunt, Amy (Randy) Hahn, of Louisville; her uncle, Allen Speedy, of Columbus; and her cousins, Andrew (Liz) and Lauren Fontanarosa and Abby, Clay, Brody, and Erin Hahn.

She was preceded in death by her paternal grandparents, Bernard and Dorothy Herschel, and her maternal grandfather, Robert Speedy.

Family will receive friends and loved ones on Thursday, August 2, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes, Austintown Chapel. Closing prayers will be held on Friday, August 3, at 9:30 a.m. at the funeral home, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. at St. Christine Church in Youngstown.

Interment will follow at Calvary Cemetery, where Allie will be laid to rest next to her paternal grandparents.

A Mass in Allie’s memory will also be held in South Bend at a future date.

Memorial contributions may be made in Allie’s name to the Navari Student Outreach Clinic/Indiana School of Medicine-South Bend, 1234 N. Notre Dame Ave., South Bend, IN 46617.