Viola J Gordon

VIOLA JAREL GORDON was born on September 30, 1930 in Hazlem, St. James, Jamaica, West Indies. She was the second child born to the late Adolphous Gordon and the late Medora Gooden. Viola sadly left us to be with the Lord on February 23, 2024, after almost three years of illness. Viola was a woman who loved the Lord. In the 50 plus years that she had accepted the Lord as her personal Savior, she stayed faithful to Him, until the day He called her home. She was a dedicated member of the Manna Bible Baptist Church at Belvedere Avenue until she was unable to attend because of illness. Viola had a passion for service. She was on the missionary outreach, the hospitality ministry and food pantry ministry at her church. Her faith was always the cornerstone of her life. Her relationship with God was profound and personal. Viola was educated at an elementary level in the St. James school systems. After leaving school she moved to the district of Farm in May Pen, in the parish of Clarendon where she lived for several years then she moved to Laughton Town district in St. Ann. While living in Laughton Town she took a job caring for a lady with terminal illness. After the death of her charge she moved to the city of Kingston and there she worked with the Kelly family. She was in their employ until she left for the United States of America In 1970. Viola left Jamaica through a sponsorship program to the United States to work with a doctor and his family. The sponsorship with the family was only for one year. After the year was up she decided to take the GNA course. After she finished, she applied to and was employed as a Geriatric Nursing Assistant at The Baptist Home of Maryland, where she worked until she retired at 62 years old. Viola was loving and kind. She was loved by the residents and her fellow employees alike. Viola loved what she did, she was at her happiest when she was helping someone. She always had a kind word of encouragement for everyone, especially the young people. Although her journey was not always easy she faced each challenge and adversity with a resilience and grace that inspired all those who knew her. Viola’s goal was to have her children here with her in the United States. She worked very hard to fulfill that particular goal. Her goal was realized when all of her seven children were in the United States with her. Viola loved to cook she loved having her family around her. She would cook big thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and have all her children and grandchildren, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews and even non relatives to dinner. Her favorite TV show was “Keeping up Appearances” you could always hear her laughing loudly at the Hyacinth’s antics. She also loved to do Find-A-Word puzzles. You would see several of those puzzle books in her room, but her favorite book was the bible. She loved to pray, read the bible and praise God. Those are the memories that we will always cherished. As we bid farewell to Viola we are comforted by the countless memories we shared with her. Her legacy will live on in the way she touched the lives of everyone around her. Viola is survived by her 7 children: Carl, Hyacinth (Sonia), Earl, Rose, Anthony, Paulette and Veronica, sister Meldora. Her other seven siblings preceded her in death. Son-in-law Henrique (Ally), Daughters-in-law Annamay and Ruthann, sister-in-law Arlene, 20 grandchildren 2 who preceded her in death, 20 great grandchildren, 1 who also preceded her in death, and a host of nieces, nephews, grand nieces, grand nephews and other relatives and friends.

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Viola J Gordon

September 30, 1930 - February 23, 2024