Dennis Fitzgerald Heber

Dennis Fitzgerald Heber, 94, of Norfolk, Virginia, was born on November 29, 1930, in Georgetown, Guyana, the last child of the late John Joseph "Poppa" Heber and Elsie (Browne) Heber. He was educated in the Georgetown elementary and secondary school systems. After high school, he attended and graduated in 1950 from the London Chamber of Commerce, Commercial Education Institute in Georgetown, with an accounting diploma, and accepted employment as an accountant at Garnett & Company.
Three years later, in 1953, Dennis married his sweetheart and life partner Herma "Mirry" Ward at St. George's Cathedral. After more than 16 years of employment at Garnett & Company, he migrated to Paterson, New Jersey, in 1965, at the invitation of his sister Joyce. Upon arrival in the US, Dennis immediately obtained employment at the former Paterson General Hospital and took evening courses to acquire his US accounting certification. In 1967, after receiving his certification, he was hired as an accountant at Wonder Bread in Paterson, but continued working part-time at the hospital for several more months to earn extra money to expedite bringing his wife and seven children to the US.
During his employment at Wonder Bread, he received numerous awards and recognition, including a Certificate of Commendation as the Shop Steward who made a significant contribution to the advancement of Local 153. In 1998, after 31 years at Wonder Bread, Dennis retired and moved to Long Beach, Mississippi, to follow the sun and the beach. In Mississippi, he obtained employment as security at the Gulfport, Mississippi Job Corps Center and worked there from 1998 until 2005, when the Job Corps buildings were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
Dennis' family tree tells us that by adoption, he was the great-grandson of the late Anglican Bishop Reginald Heber, known worldwide for his humanitarian and community work in Southern India and the more than 57 hymns he wrote, including "Holy, Holy, Holy." The family tree reflects that in 1825, Bishop Heber adopted Dennis' grandfather, a young child named Karim Bacchus, who was born in Calcutta, India. He changed Karim's name to Joseph Heber. Unfortunately, in 1826, Bishop Heber died untimely at the young age of 42. In 1851, Joseph and 289 other East Indian indentured laborers were boarded onto the British ship "Equestrian," which was headed to Trinidad because of the economic and political unrest in British Guiana (now Guyana), due to the Sugar Duties Act of 1846. They arrived in Trinidad on March 17, 1852, and 30 years later, when Joseph's indenture was satisfied, he was sent to Guyana around 1881. Shortly after arriving in Guyana, he met and married Rebecca Hamlet, who was several years his junior. In January 1883, the couple welcomed a son, John Joseph "Poppa" Heber, Dennis' father.
Dennis was very gifted at repairing and fixing things. On many occasions, after he had finished putting together a project, there would be spare parts left over, and his family would poke fun at him about it.
He leaves to cherish fond memories, his devoted wife of 72 years, Herma "Mirry" Heber of Norfolk, Virginia; four sons, Philip (Mattie Lois) Ward and Denis Joseph Heber, of Gulfport, Mississippi, Jonathan "Rick" Heber of Lugoff, South Carolina and David (Norma) Heber of Butler, New Jersey; three daughters, "Wendy" Marlene Bragg and Dr. Lorna J. Perkins, of Norfolk, Virginia and Denise (Michael) Nicholson of Newport News, Virginia; 20 grandchildren, 33 great grandchildren, 4 great-great grandchildren; 1 sister, Joyce Heber of Passaic, New Jersey; 1 sister-in-law Rita Fraser of Paterson, New Jersey; a lifelong best friend of more than 86 years Carl Narine, of Homosassa, Florida, who was Dennis' classmate and coworker at Garnett; along with a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and friends.
Memorial Service:
Saturday, May 31, 2025
11:00 AM
Metropolitan Funeral Service
7246 Granby Street
Norfolk, VA