Dr. Joseph Wheeler Herod, Jr.

Dr. Joseph Wheeler Herod, Jr., 81, of Enterprise, died Saturday, May 27, 2017 at Flowers Hospital following a brief illness. Funeral services will be held 2:00 PM, Tuesday, May 30, 2017 at First Baptist Church of Enterprise with Dr. Ben Bowden and Rev. Sonny Moore officiating. Burial will follow at Meadowlawn Cemetery with Searcy Funeral Home and Crematory directing. Visitation will be in the church fellowship hall from 12 Noon until service time. Dr. Herod, the first child of Joseph W. Herod, Sr. and Audrey Roy Herod, was born in Selma, AL. He graduated from Orrville High School, received a B. S. Degree from the University of Alabama, and an M. D. Degree from the Medical College of Alabama (now UAB). After medical school, he completed an internship at Brooke Army Hospital, San Antonio, TX. He then served two years as a US Army physician in Heilbronn, Germany. Following his military service, he was a General Practice resident at Carraway Methodist Medical Center, Birmingham, AL. He practiced medicine in Enterprise, AL, for 45 years focusing his practice on Pediatrics and Behavioral Medicine. Dr. Herod has impacted both his community and church. He was an active member of numerous boards including the E. L. Gibson Foundation, the Enterprise State Community College Foundation, and the Medical Center Enterprise Hospital Board. At First Baptist Church, Enterprise, he was a Deacon and twice a Deacon Chairman. Additionally, he has served on the Finance Committee, Designated Gifts Committee, and on numerous other committees. He led in the formation of a Men’s Monthly Prayer Group and has been a faithful member of his Sunday School Class. Dr. Herod was preceded in death by his parents and by his stepmother, Lillian Herod. Survivors include his wife, Sue Stokes Herod; two sons, David Herod (Barbara), Springfield, VA and David John Stefaniak (Holly), Athens, AL; two daughters, Leah Herod, Columbia, SC and Debra Roberson (Jay), Decatur, AL; 10 grandchildren, Gracie, Emily Anne, and Reid Roberson; Nathan and Audrey Herod; Anna Caitlin, Graham, Braden, Stephen, and Davis Stefaniak; one brother, James Victor Herod (Martha Sue), Grove Hill, AL; one sister, Elizabeth Herod Murdock (Mickey), Elba, AL; two step-siblings, Joe Shoemaker (Betty), Slidell, LA and Ann Jarman (John), Lowndesboro, AL; many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Baptist Church, Short Term Missions Fund, 302 North Main St., Enterprise, AL or to Forgotten Children’s Ministries, Ryan and Philann Stewart, PO Box 36399, Birmingham, AL 35236. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Dr. Joseph Wheeler Herod, Jr., please visit our flower store.