Mrs. Lillian Edoris Warwick Watkins, 80, of Charlotte, North Carolina, and formerly of Girard Avenue, Clifton Forge, Virginia, died Friday, September 3, 2010 at her residence in Charlotte.
She was born in Lynchburg, Virginia on December 26, 1929, a daughter of the late James and Golden Scott Warwick.
She was the youngest of six children.
She attended Payne Elementary School and Dunbar High School. She graduated from Hampton Institute in 1951, receiving a B.S. degree in Elementary Education.
Mrs. Watkins accepted a position teaching for the Clifton Forge Public School System. Lill served as assistant principal for a time and as a high school basketball and cheerleading coach. Her true calling was teaching and she helped educate children in Clifton Forge for almost 40 years before retiring in 1988.
Students shared many stories and laughs about how she was so "strict". Even though there was a lot of sternness and expectations from Mrs. Watkins in the classroom, her sincere love and concern for each and every one of her students was unmistakable. Mrs. Watkins impacted the lives of many city of Clifton Forge school students. It is obvious she imparted much wisdom and made a positive impact on many of their lives.
Outside the classroom she always enjoyed playing cards, talking on the phone, reading, dancing and crochet. She tutored children and served as a volunteer at Alleghany Regional Hospital. Mrs. Watkins stayed active in the social setting where she loved to run into many of her former students. She enjoyed finding out how couples met and kept an album with their stories.
She had a strong relationship with the Lord. At the young age of 12 she became a member of the Jackson Street United Methodist Church in Lynchburg. After moving to Clifton Forge, she became a long-time member of Main Street Baptist Church. She was active in the church serving in the JB Williams choir, the Usher board and served as Deaconess of the church. She was a member of New Beginnings Community Church in Charlotte.
Mrs. Watkins was preceded in death by her husband William Henry Loyd Watkins in January of 2000, and by brothers Jimmy Jennings, Warren Warwick and Ernest Clyde Warwick, and by sisters Marguerite Allen and Emily Oliver.
She is survived by a daughter, Michelle Edoris Watkins Meriweather and husband, Christopher of Charlotte; a stepson, Leonard Allen of Arlington; 2 grandchildren, Christopher Meriweather, Jr. and Chanelle Meriweather; a number of nieces, nephews and cousins.
A funeral service will be conducted Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. from Main Street Baptist Church with Rev. Matthew T. Barnette, Sr. officiating and Rev. Arlene Cooper will deliver the Eulogy. Interment will follow in the Red Hill Cemetery, Clifton Forge. Active Pallbearers will be William Allen, Robert Barber, Danny Christian, Leo Davis, Carl Hamm, Scott Pierce and Reginald Wallace. Flower bearers will be Mrs. Gretel Anderson, Mrs. Carolyn Barnette, Mrs. Helen Jean Young Fitzgerald, Mrs. Barbara Davenport, Mrs. Rhonda Godfrey, Mrs. Lois B. Morris, Ms. Ernestine Scott and Ms. Alma Watts. The body will be placed in Main Street Baptist Church at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The family will receive friends from 2:30 p.m. until time of service at the church.
Arrangements are being handled by the Nicely Funeral Home, Clifton Forge.
