Remembering
Sydney's story
Born August 21, 1993, in Broken Bow, Nebraska. Raised in Neligh. Twenty-four years old when she was taken from the people who loved her.
Sydney Irene Loofe spent her early childhood in Arcadia, Nebraska, before her family — parents George and Susie, and siblings Levi and MacKenzie — settled in Neligh around 2000. She went through Neligh-Oakdale Public Schools from second grade on, graduating in 2011. She played basketball, played golf, and was part of the school band.
Friends and coworkers remembered her as easygoing and warm — the kind of person who made people feel comfortable around her. She loved being outdoors, especially fishing, and she doted on her cat, Mimzy. After high school, Sydney moved to Lincoln, where she was working at a local Menards at the time of her death.
In November 2017, Sydney went missing after a first date, and was later found to have been murdered. The loss was felt far beyond her hometown — Neligh's streets filled with green ribbons in her honor, and the case drew national attention as it moved through the courts in the years that followed.
“Without the love and support that we've received, I'm sure we would have never made it.”
— Susie Loofe, Sydney's motherIn the years since, Sydney's community has kept finding ways to honor her. The Ponca Tribe of Nebraska dedicated a memorial bench overlooking the Elkhorn River in Neligh's Riverside Park in her memory. A local organization created a scholarship in her name for a Nebraska student pursuing criminal justice, social work, or online-safety work. Her story is now also the subject of an upcoming documentary.
This foundation was created to keep that spirit of turning grief into good going — directing every donation toward causes chosen in Sydney's memory.