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2023 SESSION
WHEREAS, Wilbert McKinley Bland, Sr., a successful business owner in Petersburg who touched countless lives through his generosity and commitment to servant leadership, died on September 9, 2022; and
WHEREAS, a native of Prince George County, Wilbert Bland graduated from J.E.J. Moore High School and continued his education at what is now Virginia State University; and
WHEREAS, while working with his brother, William Nelson Bland, Sr., at Bland Funeral Homes, Wilbert Bland decided to pursue a career as a florist and apprenticed under the late L.L. Meredith at The Flower Mart; and
WHEREAS, after honing his craft, Wilbert Bland opened Bland’s Florist, which has provided beautiful floral arrangements for any occasion to the residents of Petersburg for more than 59 years and became one of the oldest continually operating Black-owned businesses in the city; and
WHEREAS, Wilbert Bland served his peers in the floral industry as president of the National Florist Association and offered his expertise to the Petersburg Economic Development Authority, the Petersburg Jaycees, the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce, and the advisory committee to the Petersburg chief of police; and
WHEREAS, Wilbert Bland also volunteered his time and wise leadership to various civic and social clubs, including the Petersburg chapters of The Links, Inc., The Drifters, Inc., and the National Epicureans; and
WHEREAS, Wilbert Bland began to cultivate his deep and abiding faith at a young age; he was baptized at Loving Union Baptist Church in Disputanta and became an active member of First Baptist Church in Petersburg in later life; and
WHEREAS, Wilbert Bland will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by his devoted wife of 56 years, Vivian; his children, Sylinda and Kenny, and their families; and numerous other family members and friends; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Wilbert McKinley Bland, Sr., a highly admired entrepreneur and community leader in Petersburg; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Wilbert McKinley Bland, Sr., as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for his memory.