Virginia G. Gerrald

Chapin, SC – Virginia G. Gerrald passed away peacefully at Carroll Campbell Place in Lexington, SC.

A Memorial Service will be held at 2:00 pm on December 8, 2024 at Chapin Presbyterian Church with interment to follow at Bush River Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends from 1:00 pm until 2:00 pm at Chapin Presbyterian Church.

A native of Dillon, SC, Virginia G. Gerrald was born June 6, 1939, to Charles and Martha George. She will be remembered most for her love of God, family, and friends.

In her early career days, Virginia enjoyed working as a hair stylist and making people feel confident in their appearance. In her later career days, she loved working with young people and colleagues at Irmo High School. She instructed in the first computer lab at Irmo High School, teaching many students and colleagues in the use of computers. She also supervised a study hall with over 100 students in each class. Her students had tremendous respect for her, and her quiet study hall was one where students could truly learn. Even though Virginia had a successful career, she was always first and foremost a homemaker, mother, and wife. Virginia could do anything she put her mind to. She prepared delicious meals for her family every day, kept the house tidy, and kept the family on track and meeting her high expectations. She took great pleasure in decorating her home and caring for her beautiful yard, filled with stunning azaleas, hydrangeas, and gorgeous trees and foliage.

It was important to Virginia that her family be in church every Sunday and most Wednesday evenings. In her earlier years, she was a member of St. Andrews Baptist Church in Columbia, SC. She loved creating floral arrangements for the church, as well as planning activities for “Saints Alive,” a senior citizen’s church group. In her later years, she was a member of Chapin Presbyterian Church, where she especially took delight in participating in the church’s women’s groups, as well as planning activities for the Seniors. Finally, when it was impossible for her to attend church in-person any longer, she took pleasure in supporting and watching both the Chapin Presbyterian Church and First Baptist Church of Columbia, SC via internet and television.

Outside of church, Virginia enjoyed hosting gatherings of friends and family, especially in the summer months on Lake Murray and in the winter months at Christmas parties in her home. She loved spending time with her family and being the world’s best mom to her children, even earning the title of Lake Murray’s  “Mother of the Community.” One of the things her children loved most about her was that she always encouraged and expected them to do their very best and look their very best.

In addition to her parents, Virginia is predeceased by her husband, Harold Gerrald; her brother, Emory George; and her sisters, Carolyn Quick and Janice Coxe.

Those left to cherish her memory are her son, Mitch Stephens and his wife Patricia; her daughter, Darlene Stephens and her husband Danny Newton; her granddaughter, Lindsey Pearson; and her brother, Charlie George and his wife Geri.