Gladys Herrera

Gladys de las Mercedes Ball de Herrera, 87, of Knoxville, Tennessee, joined the choir of saints on October 21, 2022 suddenly and without warning. Gladys was born on March 16, 1935 in Maracaibo, Venezuela, as the ninth of eleven children to José Rafael Ball Lossada and Mercedes María Díaz de Ball. Her greatest loves were Jesus, her family, and the Church. Her talents of cooking, creative storytelling, and a kind-hearted listening ear will forever go unmatched. She was the quintessential matriarch of her family and a leader of her beloved Catholic community in Knoxville. She married the love of her life Juan Antonio Herrera Pérez on December 19th, 1959 in Caracas, Venezuela and was soon blessed with her children Juan Antonio and Pérsides Mercedes. In 1997, they sold all their possessions in Caracas and moved to Knoxville, TN to join their children and grandchildren. Right away she attended Spanish-language Mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral and began fostering a well-knit Hispanic Catholic community with her passion to serve the needy, tend to the sick and feed the hungry. In 2018, she became a proud American Citizen. Her 63-year marriage to Juan Antonio served as a beacon and example to all who witnessed their constant companionship and steadfast affection for each other. Together, they were both bedrock foundation and cornerstone serving as Godparents, Counselors, Sponsors, Witnesses, and Ministers of their faith. In 2015, she earned an Advanced Biblical Studies degree from the University of Dallas School of Ministry. She is survived by the love of her life, Juan Antonio Herrera Pérez, sisters María Isabel Ball and Mercedes María Ball de Dominguez; children Dr. Juan Antonio Herrera and wife Kim Suzanne Herrera, and Pérsides Mercedes Zambrano and husband Angel Eduardo Zambrano; grandchildren Lucas Antonio Herrera and wife Katherine Brink Herrera, Mercedes Elena Zambrano, Maximiliano Antonio Herrera and wife Dr. Erika Love Wild Herrera, Angel Ignacio Zambrano, and Dr. Noelle Daun Herrera; great-grandchildren Eli Antonio, Wilder Antonio, and Isabel Brinkley; her cherished nieces and nephews that considered her their second mother; and all of her precious and beloved godchildren and many friends who are still with us to carry on her memory. Receiving of Friends will be at Rose Mortuary (6200 Kingston Pike Knoxville, TN 37919) on Thursday, Oct. 27 from 5-7pm. A Funeral Mass will be held at Sacred Heart Cathedral (711 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919) at 10am on Friday, Oct. 28 with interment to follow. She fed us countless times and in so many ways, so in lieu of flowers, please consider donating time, talent, and treasure to a food bank, food pantry, or soup kitchen.

Tributes

Gladys Herrera

March 16, 1935 - October 21, 2022