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Obituary For Jean Patterson Wilson
Jean Patterson Wilson was born in Rocky Mount, Virginia on November 11, 1936, to Willie O. and Sirrenia Smith Patterson. Her family moved to Martinsville, Virginia in 1939. Other than the first three years of her life, she grew up in Martinsville, Virginia.
She graduated from Albert Harris High School in 1955, where she ranked number nine in her class. She enrolled in Kittrell Junior College, Kittrell, North Carolina, where she received an Associate of Arts Degree. After graduating from Kittrell Junior College, she attended Allen University, Columbia, South Carolina, but after one semester of her junior year there, she transferred to St. Augustine’s College (University), Raleigh, North Carolina for the second semester of her junior year. She graduated from St. Augustine’s College (University), where she received a Bachelor of Arts Degree with a double major in French and in English.
Her career in education started in the Martinsville City School System in 1961, as a teacher of French and English at the Albert Harris High School. When schools were integrated, she was assigned in 1967 to teach French (FLES) Foreign Language in the Elementary School, at the Druid Hills Elementary School. Upon opening of the new Martinsville High School in 1968, she was assigned to teach French and English there. In 1970, she was assigned to the Martinsville Junior High School to launch the French program for the eighth and ninth graders. She taught and loved the position of French and English teacher at the junior high school until her retirement in 1992. After retiring from the Martinsville City School System, she took the position as coordinator for the Alliance for Excellence at Patrick Henry Community College in 1992, where she has served for thirty-four years.
In her teaching years in the Martinsville schools, she served on evaluation teams in French for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) in Chesapeake, Virginia and Virginia Beach, Virginia. She participated in the federal programs in French (NDEA) National Defense Education Act at Hollins College (University), Hollins, Virginia, in 1962; Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, 1966; the University of Toulouse, Toulouse, Franch, 1968; and Millersville State College (University), Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1978. She received a Master of Science Degree in Education from North Carolina A and T State University, Greensboro, North Carolina in 1970.
She was inducted into the Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority at St. Augustine’s College (University) in 1960. She was the first African American teacher to be inducted into the Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority for female educators in Martinsville and Henry County. She was the first African American woman to be appointed to the Martinsville Planning Commission, where she served for fifteen years from 1993 to 2008.
She was a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where she has served as church musician for thirty years. She is also a member of the Fayette Area Historical Initiative (FAHI).
Jean leaves behind a legacy of love, faith, and resilience through her devoted sister, Earnestine Morrison and her husband, James of Ridgeway, VA; two brothers, Willie Patterson and James Patterson both of Ridgeway, VA; three nieces, Sherry Carter of Hanover, MD, Kathy Hairston and Pamella Pritchett both of Ridgeway, VA; three nephews, Michael Morrison of Ridgeway, VA, Willie Patterson and John Patterson both of Martinsville, VA; 4 great nieces; six great great nieces; six great great nephews; and a host of other relatives and friends.
A visitation service will be held on Saturday, March 21, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. with a memorial service at 12 noon at the C.R.V. Memorial Chapel at Hairston Funeral Home, 301 Fayette St., Martinsville with Bishop J.C. Richardson, JR., Eulogist. Interment will follow at Carver Memorial Gardens, 869 Parkway Dr., Martinsville, VA.
Friends may greet the family at Hairston Funeral Home on Friday, March 20, 2026, between the hours of 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. At other times, the family will receive friends at the home of her sister and brother-in-law, Earnestine and James Morrison, 1327 Old Mill Rd., Ridgeway, VA. Live streaming of the Memorial Service will be available at Hairston Funeral Home live via Facebook.
Courteous, efficient and dependable services provided by Hairston Funeral Home.
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I had the honor and privilege of getting to know and work with Miss at Patrick &Henry Community College. I served as a member of the Alliance for Excellence, and it was an honor to serve along side with Miss Wilson promoting the importance of education that she wholeheartedly believed in. She believed that everyone was worthy of an education...regardless. No doubt heaven put out the welcome sign for Miss Wilson, and special memories shall I carry in my heart until we meet again.
My deepest condolence and blessings to the family. Chris Niblett
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As some people journey through life they leave footprints of kindness, love courage and compassion, joy and faith. Even when they're gone the trail they left behind continues to inspire us. Jean was an energetic, compassionate person whose legacy lives on for many years. Gloria Lindsay
Our sympathy and love in the memories of Mrs. Wilson. She was always a sweetheart. Family you are in our prayers. Peter and Willie Mae Harris
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Ms. Jean Wilson was a trailblazer and a huge servant to the Martinsville and Henry County residents. She emphasized the importance of education to so many students in the area. I worked alongside of her with the Patrick & Henry Community College Alliance for Excellence and had the privilege to see her passion for helping students at first hand. She was a role model not only to me but so many who came across her path. She will be "sorely missed."
As students at AHHS, I admired Jean's character and her willingness to share her goals and interests. I never told her that she was my role model, but I really feel that she knew the depth of my respect. I would visit her each time I came home to visit. I also called her for advice that I would trust. ...kind, intelligent, gentle leadership. I missed her contact in recent years, but constantly thought of Jean. My prayer and heart are free that she is relieved of pain and with the comfort of our loving Lord. My love Jean🙏🏽😘Thank you🙏🏽
Ms. wilson made a big difference in my life and the life of my husband. I was blessed enough to pin a corsage on her at her retirement from the Patrick and Henry College. Ms. Wilson introduced us to the Board of Stepping Stones and the board of Alliance of Excellence at Patrick and Henry Community College. She would make sure that we had what we needed when we needed it. She will forever live in our hearts.
Ms. Jean and my mom often shared that they had been friends since the first grade. Every Friday, she would stop by to visit my mom, and whenever I passed through the kitchen during their conversations, she and I would exchange a few words in French for fun. I have many wonderful memories of the two of them together, especially listening to them laugh and share stories from their school days. I pray that her family and friends find comfort in the many memories of her that will continue to bring smiles as well.
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