Willowdean Jernigan Strickland

Willowdean Jernigan Strickland, daughter of Joseph Eldridge and Vira Tew Jernigan,was born May 4, 1927 in the Stoney Run community of Sampson County, NC. Shepassed away December 16. 2012 at The Oaks of Mayview, Raleigh, NC.In 1946 Willowdean moved to Raleigh and married Alton Strickland, the love of her life.Together they raised three children and devoted their lives to community service andwork in the Baptist Church. Willowdean was a founding member of Emmanual Baptist Church and a Deacon there. An accomplished musician, she was church organist at Emmanual, Calvary, and Trinity Baptist churches over a span of 40 years. For 23 yearsshe was church secretary at Athens Drive Baptist Church. In her later years she worked in the offices of Camp Oak Hill. The camp and its Christian mission became another love of her life.Willowdean showed a tireless devotion to her family, her God, her friends, and to those in need.Such devotion could only have been sustained by her great faith in God. Her life was a sterling example of humble servanthood to both God and man.She ispreceeded in death by her parents, her four siblings, her husband, Alton, her son Doug, and her grandson, Cameron.Willowdean will be forever missed by her friends and surviving family members; her daughter Gwen and husband T. Y. Baker;her son Linwood and his wife Mary;her grandchildren Michael Woody (Elizabeth), Brooke Baker, Yates Baker, Christian Foss (Dana), Tyler Foss (Rebecca), Hunter Strickland, and Laura Davis (Blake); andher great grandchildren Nolan and Hayden Foss. She is also survived by a loving group of nieces and nephews to whom she was devoted like a mother.In addition she leaves her dear sisters-in-law, Fanny Bass and Helen Mangum. They were an inseparable threesome.Our family would like to express our deepest gratitude to the nurses, aides and staff at Nurses Station 4 and the Physical Therapy staff at Mayview for their tireless devotion to mom.In lieu of flowers contirbutions may be sentin Willowdeans memory to Camp Oak Hill, 3824 Barrett Dr., suite 303, Raleigh, NC 27609.Arrangements for Willowdean are being handled by Bryan LeeFuneral Home. Visitation is 10:00 am Wednesday, December 19 at Emmanual Baptist Church, 2100 Noble Rd. Raleigh, NC 27608. Funeral services will follow at 11:00 am in the church sanctuary.