Salem Funeral Home
Virginia Jones Schafer, 85, died on Thursday, November 25, 2021, at her private home in Arbor Acres United Methodist Retirement Community in Winston-Salem, North Carolina of metastatic breast cancer. Mrs. Schafer was born on December 9, 1935, to Lama Murray Jones and Percy Lee Jones in Raleigh, North Carolina. She attended Murphey Public Grade School, currently the oldest standing public school building in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 1954, Mrs. Virginia Jones Schafer graduated Salutatorian from Hugh Morson High School in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Mrs. Schafer began her higher education after being awarded the Hugh Morson High School Scholarship to attend Meredith College in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was recognized for her academic achievements on the Dean's List and tapped by Silver Shield, the leadership fraternity. Mrs. Virginia Jones Schafer graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Minor in Education from Meredith College in 1958.
During her childhood and early adult years, Mrs. Schafer was faithfully committed to the Raleigh Gospel Chapel. While attending worship services, she met her husband, Herbert Chris Schafer. They were married on June 14, 1958, at the Gospel Chapel in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Mr. and Mrs. Schafer established their first home together for one year in Asheville, North Carolina where Enka High School welcomed Mrs. Schafer as a teacher in the English Department and co-sponsor of the Enka Beta Leadership and Service Club. To further their educations, Mr. and Mrs. Schafer relocated to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. In 1960, Mrs. Virginia Jones Schafer earned her Master of Education in Guidance from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The Schafers then moved to Atlanta, Georgia where they resided for forty-nine years. In the fall of 1960, Mrs. Schafer continued her dedicated teaching career at Morris Brandon School in Atlanta, Georgia and throughout the next several years, she completed her post-graduate work in High School English, Guidance and Counseling, and Elementary Teaching at Emory University.
Mrs. Schafer was blessed with two daughters, Sharon Lee in 1964 and Sarah (Sally) Christina in 1972, to whom she displayed an abundance of love and dedicated motherhood. These years were centered around the upbringing of her daughters and her Christian fellowship encouraging young people to follow their faith in God, first attending Northwoods Bible Chapel and later North Atlanta Bible Chapel. She was also graciously involved in Breckenridge Garden Club Arts One and the DeKalb Federation of Garden Clubs where she formed treasured friendships until her death. Mrs. Schafer was overjoyed with the addition of three grandchildren to the family beginning in 1993.
In 2009, the Schafers retired to Arbor Acres United Methodist Retirement Community in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her years in Winston-Salem continued to be immersed in her special relationships with loved ones, especially her grandchildren.
Mrs. Virginia Jones Schafer is preceded in death by her husband of sixty-two years, Herbert Chris Schafer, parents, and sister Rebecca Jones Massey. She is survived by her two daughters: Sharon Schafer Kennedy and husband William Moore Kennedy of Charlotte, North Carolina and Sarah (Sally) Schafer Thomas and husband Christopher Reid Thomas of Spartanburg, South Carolina; her three grandchildren: Kathryn Lee Kennedy of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Virginia Metcalf Thomas and Reid Schafer Thomas of Spartanburg, South Carolina; and her loving aunts: Verda Murray Carter and Inez Murray Carter of Middlesex, North Carolina.
Our beloved Sissy will be cherished for her unconditional and unwavering devotion to her two daughters, sons-in-law, and three grandchildren, commitment to her personal relationship with Jesus Christ her Savior, and her pure enjoyment of a quiet moment to read or gaze out her window in admiration of God's creation full of beauty and birds.
A private graveside service officiated by Rod Sharp of Winston-Salem, North Carolina was held by her immediate family on Friday, December 3, 2021, at 1 pm at Forsyth Memorial Park in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Memorials may be made to the "Allen Cancer Fund" at Novant Health Foundation, 1701 S. Hawthorne Rd., Winston-Salem, NC 27103, or a charitable organization of your choice.
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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - Memoriams
http://www.ajc.com
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