Tributes have been paid to a much-loved Weymouth pub singer who has died.
Sheryl Lee courageously spoke out about her battle with alcoholism just months before her death aged 62.
She was receiving palliative care at Anning House care home in Weymouth where she passed away on April 22.
Stevenage-born Sheryl, who was diagnosed with alcohol related liver disease, had become so ill that a liver transplant wasn’t possible.
Her mum Gina Anderson, 87, paid tribute to the bravery of her ‘wonderful daughter’ who was ‘friends with everybody.’
She said: “I want to say how proud I am of my daughter. She had such strength when she was told that she wouldn’t get a liver transplant.
“I thought she would collapse in a heap, but she didn’t, she just got on with things.”
Towards the end of Sheryl's life she and her mum would play ‘the Pollyanna game’, Gina said.
Playing the 'glad game', from the novel and film Pollyanna, inspired the two of them to always find something to be glad about.
“It kept us going,” Gina said.
Sheryl spent time in the last weeks of her life sharing her story of alcohol dependency through charity the British Liver Trust, in the hope that it would help others.
READ MORE: 'Alcohol sneaks up on you' - pub singer receiving end-of-life care'
Gina said: “The addiction started when Sheryl went on stage on her own as a solo singer and would need a drink because she was shy and then alcohol became her crutch.
“I used to say to her when she was down towards the end ‘You can’t go yet, you have to send out the message about drinking to warn other people'.
“Sheryl would always be talking to people online advising them to see their doctor if they were worried about their drinking and to get a blood test to see how their liver has been affected.
“She became determined to spread the word. I know that I have lost her but she was a wonderful person and she just wanted to help other people and get that message out there. “
Tracey Whittle and Donna Gray of Weymouth paid tribute to their friend Sheryl, who spent time with them in the last year of her life visiting the Dorset coast and watching sunsets.
Donna said: "Sheryl sprinkled her magic wherever she went. I was so proud to call her my friend. She was always so positive."
"She would know how to get the best out of everybody when she was singing," Tracey said.
"If people came into the pub in a bad mood she would put a smile on their face and would light up the room."
Sheryl's close-knit group of friends said she was 'the most beautiful lady, she loved life and we're blessed to have known her.'
They added: "She was more than an entertainer, she was more than a friend with a heart as big as an ocean. Sheryl was vibrant and full of life with a vibrant smile. She was warm, kind and funny and an inspiration to many.
"Anyone who knew her will treasure their memories and her legacy will shine on.
"She coined the phrase ‘Sunday Club’, bringing together the community in wonderful Sunday afternoons, full of enjoyment, entertainment and fun.
"Sheryl exuded a positive energy even when she knew her health was failing. Some people light the world in their path - Sheryl was one of those people."
Sheryl's friends added that 'Weymouth now forever has a Sheryl-sized hole in it.'
"She will continue to inspire people with way she lived and enjoyed life even though things were far from easy.
"Sheryl would bring the room alive with her infectious smile, contagious laugh and her heart full of gold."
Sheryl's support group at the British Liver Trust said: "Sheryl was a constant source of encouragement and inspiration and she always will be."
A celebration of Sheryl’s life will be held on Thursday, May 16 at 2pm in the Ocean Room at Weymouth Pavilion. The service will be at 2pm to 3pm followed by entertainment including live music, poetry and a reflection of Sheryl’s life.
People will line the street outside from The Ocean Room and wave Sheryl off to her cremation, which will be a closed setting.
The dress code is colourful, and in keeping with Sheryl's love of flowers, people are asked to bring a single pink rose and to wear flowers in their hair.
Family flowers only, and donations to the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust and the British Liver Trust can be made through Sheryl’s ‘Go Fund Me’ page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/celebration-of-sheryl-lee
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