Henderson served on the council for 12 years and advocated for the construction of the Sherwood Center for the Arts

A memorial service for Linda Henderson, a longtime member of the Sherwood City Council who was responsible for helping bring to fruition some of Sherwood’s bigger recent projects, is set for 3 p.m. Saturday, May 31, at the Sherwood Center for the Arts. 

Henderson, 60, died May 9, as the result of a sudden brain bleed and passed peacefully surrounded by family and friends.

A council member from 2005 to 2017, Henderson was on board during the construction of the Sherwood Civic Center, Sherwood Public Library and Cannery Square. 

In addition, along with other supporters, she advocated heavily for the construction of the Sherwood Center for the Arts, the city’s 15,000-square-foot venue that recently observed its first decade in the city.

Robyn Folsom, who Henderson once convinced to run for a council seat, said she’ll always remember Henderson’s enormous heart. 

“She loved people and literally lived for finding ways to serve them and improve the quality of their lives. Linda was one of the smartest people I’ve ever known,” Folsom said. “Her thirst for knowledge and understanding of how things worked was boundless! Linda used that knowledge to find ways to build and serve in Sherwood.”

Folsom said she watched Henderson form a coalition to gain support to build the center, even when it didn’t look like that was politically feasible.

“If you asked the other council members from that time if they’d intended to actually use the remaining urban renewal dollars to fund construction of the center, I think they would have said ‘no,’” Folsom said. “But Linda shared insights she’d gained from her questions and began the process of building that coalition.” 

She said Henderson was on the city’s parks board when it came time to make Snyder Park a reality. The late councilor also was a founding member of the Sherwood Foundation for the Arts. 

Having worked in human resources for many years, she most recently was employed as an Oregon Employment Department adjudicator and investigator.

As an investigator, she helped build a case involving COVID-19 pandemic unemployment payments that the U.S. Department of Justice took to trial, according to her obituary

Like Folsom, Renee Brouse, a current Sherwood City Council member who also served with Henderson, said she will miss the late councilor. 

“I will always remember Linda as someone with a huge personality who would give her left hand for somebody who needed help and support. She was a tireless volunteer,” Brouse said. “She was very, very passionate about the community of Sherwood and volunteered for so many things over the years, including 12 years on city council. I learned so much from her.”

Those wishing to livestream Henderson’s service on Saturday should visit lindahenderson.online.