Virginia Kerr Death, Obituary – A former resident of Fairfield, Illinois, Virginia Kerr passed away at 8:05 a.m. on Sunday, December 18, 2022, at Lakeland Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing in Effingham, Illinois, only a few days before she would have turned 102 years old. Up until the time of her retirement, she had been employed as a bookkeeper at Fairfield National Bank.
Jess and Kizzie (Salmon) Sorrels were Virginia’s parents, and she was born on February 28th, 1921 in Pittman, Alaska. Nita Jackson, Helen Luttrel, and Sarah Gray were her sisters. She also had a brother. In 1940, Virginia wed Howard Palmer, and the couple went on to have four children: Linda Slifer, Elaine Nelson, Jim Palmer, and Greg Palmer.
Linda Slifer and Elaine Nelson are still alive today. After Howard’s passing, she wed Tom Lingafelter, a person she had known her entire life and who had also passed away before she did. Later in life, she tied the knot with Harold Kerr, who sadly passed away before her. Virginia was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Fairfield for her whole life. She found great fulfillment in serving as a volunteer at the church’s funeral banquets. Additionally, she enjoyed her time spent working at the Clothesline retail shop. Surviving family members include a daughter named Elaine Nelson who lives in Leo, Indiana, a son named Greg Palmer who lives in Edgewood, Illinois, a daughter-in-law named Karen Palmer who lives in Taylorville, Illinois, ten grandchildren, fourteen great-grandchildren, and her first great-granddaughter is due in the month of May.
Her parents, three husbands, her daughter Linda, her son Jim, and her three sisters all passed away before her. She was the last surviving member of her family.
On Tuesday, December 27, at 12 p.m., funeral services for Virginia Kerr will be held at the Johnson and Vaughn Funeral Home in Fairfield, and she will be laid to rest in the Maple Hill Cemetery after the services. At the funeral home, visitation will begin at 11 a.m. and continue up until the time of the service.