Virginia Dearing's Obituary
Virginia Gable Dearing, age 89, of Powder Springs, died March 28, 2019. Before that date, she lived with gusto.
Virginia was born on a farm in Paulding County in 1929 the fifth of six children of George and Oma (Camp) Gable. She made many friends throughout her life, but her true best friends were her beloved sisters, Sara Gable Kowalski and Wynelle Gable Cole. Virginia also thought her brothers Jim, Camp and Luther Gable were the smartest, funniest, best looking men around. Virginia joked that she “sprang from the womb full grown” and remembers picking cotton when she was 5 or 6 and lying about her age (15) so she could get a job at The Western Union Telegraph Company in downtown Atlanta. She worked full time nights for almost two years as she completed her high school studies and graduated from Mableton High School in 1946. Virginia loved school and books and learning and was forever grateful for teachers like her favorite Latin and Ancient History teacher, Eula Mae Warren, for teaching her there was a world outside Paulding County and encouraging her to get out and discover it.
Virginia graduated from the Atlanta Bible Institute and taught Sunday School, GAs, WMU and Vacation Bible School for years. She was offered a scholarship to Georgia Baptist School of Nursing, but was unable to accept because she needed to work full time to help her family. She attended Kennesaw State University after she retired studying history. She had a special place in her heart for teachers and nurses believing they “are the best, brightest, most important people on this planet.” With her usual positive spin she always said her career choices were perfect for her and introduced her to lifelong friends and adventures.
Virginia worked as telegraph, press and computer operator, traffic supervisor and trainer for Western Union for over 40 years. While sending press for Western Union, Virginia heard Martin Luther King speak in Jacksonville, saw Hank Aaron hit home run 715 and traveled around the US and Canada teaching others how to operate telex and press equipment. One of her favorite assignments at Western Union was working temporarily for the Canadian Pacific Railway’s Telegraph Services and living for awhile in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She later took the FCC exam to become the first female computer operator at Western Union. Virginia loved working for Western Union and made life long friends. When she retired from WU in 1985, she didn’t know how to relax and promptly went back to work for Southern Bell for another 11 years. She really never retired. Or wanted to.
Virginia was affectionately known as Ginger the Gypsy after she formed a travel club consisting of friends and family called “Ginger’s Gypsies” and planned group trips all over the US, Canada and the world starting in 1972. Ginger’s first group trip was to Israel. She took travelers back to Israel five more times over the years adding Jordan, Egypt, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Libya. After the success of her first Holy Land trip, she started planning one long (3 weeks or so) bus trip per year with a theme such as the Lewis and Clark Trail, the Calgary Stampede, Westward Ho across the southwestern US and great plains, up into Canada and Alaska packing each day full of historic and unusual stops. She also planned shorter 1-7 day trips around Georgia and the Southeast and prided herself on making sure her Gypsies visited every state capital and all the provinces of Canada. She also planned one long overseas trip per year and escorted groups of friends across Europe many times from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Czech Republic, Croatia, Italy, Vatican City, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Morocco, Russia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti and south to Mexico, Costa Rica, Chile, Argentina, the Falkland Islands and several trips through the Panama Canal. Virginia insisted that everyone on her trips be in charge of something: exercise, devotionals, party nights, trip themed learning assignments and presentations and being in charge of at least one day of reporting on the group’s adventures to be turned into a trip memoir for everyone after each trip. She also loved handing out cash prizes and funny souvenirs to the person who told The Best Joke and The Great Gypsy Award to the person who helped others in the group the most during the trip based on the votes of their fellow travelers.
Virginia always said “If you’re not happy in Austell, you won’t be happy in Amsterdam.” She was funny, upbeat, loved meeting, talking to and helping people, was an amazing self taught gardener winning accolades and prizes for best yard in her neighborhoods of Wesley Heights and later Oakleigh, and had at least five books going at once and visited every library in Cobb County on a regular basis. Virginia loved walking on the Silver Comet Trail, competing with her sister to finish the day’s crossword puzzle and CryptoQuote first then later in the day watching Jeopardy together while on the phone with each other and yelling out answers, to which Virginia’s sister Nell pointed out “That’s not in the form of a question!”
Virginia was married for 57 years to Jim Dearing and they made a home and raised a family together in Austell ensuring their children knew it was “better to eat beans and go to England in March” than waste your money on eating out or buying clothes. They were also the proud owners of several tents and campers and taught their kids to camp, cook out, ride bikes and enjoy every day.
Virginia and Jim also owned and operated a daycare called Ginger’s Learning Tree in Mableton for over 25 years. They were both known to be generous and believed in helping people having a hard time. They loved nothing more than traveling with their friends or just meeting a big group of them for barbecue at Wallace Barbecue every Thursday night they were in town.
This obituary doesn’t do Virginia justice. To know her was to share a laugh, be encouraged and learn odd, fun facts about her favorite state and home, Georgia. She memorized all the presidents and first ladies and their terms in office, all the books of the Bible and could recite many of her favorite poems as well as the 23rd and 100th Psalms.
Virginia is survived by her daughter and son-in-law Vallory and Russell Welday of Clarkdale, son and daughter-in-law Jim and Robin Dearing of Memphis, TN, grandson Michael Welday of Chatsworth CA, sister Wynelle Cole of Powder Springs, many cousins, nieces, nephews, goddaughters, friends and fellow travelers.
The family will receive friends at Visitation Tuesday, April 2nd from 4P-8PM at Davis-Struempf Funeral Home 1975 East-West Connector Austell GA 30106. Funeral services will be Wednesday, April 3rd at 2PM at First Baptist Church Powder Springs 4330 North Avenue, Powder Springs GA 30127 with burial to follow at Kennesaw Memorial Park 1306 Whitlock Avenue NW, Marietta GA 30064.
The family would like to salute and thank the amazing, compassionate, kind, fun and funny staff of Bethel Gardens Assisted and Memory Care in Powder Springs. Your many kindnesses to the Dearing family over the years are gratefully acknowledged and appreciated and you will always be part of our family. In lieu of flowers please consider donating to Keep Cobb Beautiful, Andalusia: The Home of Flannery O’Connor, the American Stroke Association or your favorite charity in memory of Virginia.
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