Sylvia Ann Mayher Sikora

Sylvia Ann Mayher Sikora, 89, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, nurse, advocate and friend, passed away peacefully on August 17, 2026, surrounded by the family she loved so deeply. She fought for every last minute with the same strength, grace and determination with which she lived her life.

Born on September 14, 1936, in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, Sylvia grew up in West Mifflin and graduated from Duquesne High School in 1954. A cheerleader who remained close to the friends she had always known, Sylvia was voted "Best All Around" by her graduating class of 238 students. Looking back across the extraordinary life that followed, her classmates may have understood something about Sylvia very early.

Sylvia devoted much of her life to nursing and caring for others. She began her career as a registered nurse and eventually became a hospital administrator. Regardless of her title, however, the person who needed help always came first. She was known throughout her community as someone people could turn to, whether for medical guidance, personal support or simply a compassionate ear.

She was a fierce advocate for patients, including people struggling with alcoholism and addiction at a time when they were too often met with stigma rather than compassion. Sylvia fought to ensure that people who needed care received it and were given the time and opportunity to get better. Her example inspired others as well, with several people in her community crediting Sylvia with influencing their own decisions to enter the nursing profession.

Never one to believe that age should limit possibility, Sylvia returned to school at approximately 50 years old to earn her bachelor's degree and went on to begin work toward her master's degree.

But Sylvia's greatest legacy was the way she treated people. She possessed an extraordinary ability to see the good in others, particularly when they were having difficulty seeing it themselves. Family, friends, neighbors and patients knew they could come to Sylvia at their worst and find someone who would listen rather than judge. She was remarkably steady and even-tempered, a quality her family came to regard almost as a superpower.

Sylvia also knew how to enjoy life. She loved Barbra Streisand, Pretty Woman, Roger Moore as James Bond, Gerbera daisies, shoes and purses, and dancing to "Bloodshot Eyes." Few things made her laugh harder than playing Hate Your Neighbor with family. At her son's wedding in her mid-80s, Sylvia was still dancing in sunglasses with a cocktail in hand and later stayed around the campfire talking with family and friends until nearly 2 a.m.

Sylvia shared a remarkable life with her husband, Joseph Paul Sikora. Married on June 20, 1959, Sylvia and Joseph celebrated 67 years of marriage together. Their story began when they were teenagers and grew into an enduring example to their children and family of devotion, companionship and love.

She is survived by her beloved husband, Joseph Paul Sikora; daughter Joellen (Sikora) Mikolaj and her husband, George Mikolaj; son Joseph F. Sikora and his wife, Shenica Sikora; five grandsons, Zachary Mikolaj and his wife, Lauren, Ian Mikolaj, Connor Mikolaj, Cameron Sikora and Payton Sikora; her brother, Ken Mayher; and many deeply loved nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her father, John Mayher; mother, Mary Mayher; and brothers, John and James Mayher.

In Sylvia's final days, the love she had spent a lifetime giving to others came home to her. Family and friends surrounded her with visits, stories, laughter and love. Even as her body weakened, Sylvia found moments to recognize the people around her, laugh with them and remind them that she was still very much Sylvia.

Her family will remember a woman who ran toward people when they needed help, who rarely judged and who seemed almost constitutionally incapable of having a bad mood. In a lifetime, her family can scarcely remember hearing anyone speak an unkind word about her.

Perhaps her Duquesne High classmates had it right all along.

Best All Around.

To the many people Sylvia loved throughout her life, she leaves behind one of her most familiar expressions:

"I love you more."

Family and friends will be received for a memorial visitation on Sunday, August 23, 2026 from 1 – 5 pm at Stephen D. Slater Funeral Home, 1701 Route 51, Jefferson Hills, PA 15025. A prayer will be held in the funeral home on Monday, August 24th, at 9:15am, followed by Mass at 10am at St. Thomas A’Becket Church, Triumph of the Holy Cross Parish, 139 Gill Hall Road, Jefferson Hills, PA 15025. Interment will follow at Holy Trinity Cemetery in West Mifflin.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Sylvia's memory to the Alzheimer's Foundation of America.