Pearl Skinner

Pearl G. Skinner PORTSMOUTH - Pearl Gray Skinner, daughter of the late James and Vassie Gray, was born Nov. 29, 1925 in Norfolk. She departed this life May 29, 2010. One beloved sister, Hermione Gray Taylor, preceded her in death. Pearl was educated in Norfolk Public Schools and was a 1946 graduate of Booker T. Washington High School. She also attended what was then the Norfolk Division of Virginia State College. Pearl was a role model for strong work ethic. From high school through her adult life, from bagging at the Colonial Store to operating the elevator at Ames & Brownley, to the Holmes Convalescent Nursing Home and the Lake Taylor Hospital to working as an aide to the late Dr. James Boyd, Pearl worked and saved and worked and saved. She was a pillar of stability and integrity. A devoted fan of the NBA, Pearl had an encyclopedic memory of basketball players past and current, their stats and history. An avid southern style cooking wiz, Pearl created special meals that were so good that you could not believe it. Also highly prized and greatly loved by Pearl was her dog "Red." She was preceded in death by her husband of 36 years, Townsend Skinner. She is survived by one brother-in-law, Andrew Skinner; two sisters-in-law, Adviadine Owens and Zenibell Skinner; two stepdaughters, cousins and a host of other relatives and friends. The funeral will be held today, June 4, at noon at Corprew Funeral Home with Bishop James M. Whitaker presiding. Burial will follow in Calvary Cemetery in Norfolk.