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2024 SESSION


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 98
Celebrating the life of Bernice Davis Willey.

 

Agreed to by the Senate, February 15, 2024
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 19, 2024

 

WHEREAS, Bernice Davis Willey, a beloved daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and member of the Norfolk community, died on July 8, 2023; and

WHEREAS, after overcoming discrimination and hardship to become the first of her siblings to graduate from the former Greeleyville High School in Washington County, South Carolina, in 1953, Bernice Willey moved to Norfolk, where she met and married her husband, Edward; and

WHEREAS, as a mother of ten children, Bernice Willey devoted herself to nurturing her family and supporting them in their many endeavors, preparing them to lead successful and fulfilling lives; and

WHEREAS, over the years, Bernice Willey pursued bookkeeping and typing to assist her husband in his business, E.L. Willey Electrical Contractor in Norfolk, and when he passed away in 1996, she assumed ownership of the company, which continues to be operated by her sons, Edward, Jr., and Michael, to this day; and

WHEREAS, Bernice Willey earned a certified nursing assistant diploma later in her career and subsequently worked tirelessly to ensure the well-being of those in her care both at various institutions and as a private duty nurse until her retirement in 2005; and

WHEREAS, Bernice Willey gave abundantly of her time and energy through her involvement with the Titustown Community Center in Norfolk, where she regularly participated in gatherings such as quilting classes, birthdays, local cruises, concerts, and fashion shows; and

WHEREAS, guided by her deep and abiding faith, Bernice Willey was an active member of what was formerly the Greater United Mission Pentecostal Church in South Norfolk for 65 years, where she enjoyed worship and fellowship with her community and served as a missionary and Sunday school teacher; and

WHEREAS, preceded in death by her loving husband, Edward, Sr., and her youngest child, Esther, Bernice Willey will be fondly remembered and dearly missed by her children, Violet, Edward, Jr., Michael, David, Ellen, Regina, Marietta, Allen, and Max, and their families; and by 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 Bernice Davis Willey, a cherished member of the Norfolk community whose kindness and generosity touched countless lives; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Bernice Davis Willey as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for her memory.