Virginia Lee Felker, 90, of Hampton, Virginia passed away peacefully on Thursday, October 1, 2026. Many knew her as Ginny, and she was also affectionately known as Mom, Mama, Mom Ginny, Grandma, and Gigi, to name a few. Born in Chesapeake, Virginia on December 12, 1935, Ginny grew up in the Bowers Hill community with her parents and five siblings with whom she was always very close. When she was 19 years old, she joined the United States Army and served her country proudly for several years. For many years following, she was able to be at home full-time to raise her two children. She later joined the workforce as a bookkeeper, working at G.C. Murphy Co., Ames, and Walmart. After retirement, she spent all of her free time making memories with her family. Without question, the light of Ginny’s life was her family and she loved them more than anything. In 1955, she was swept off her feet by Thurman Daniel Felker, and they were happily married for over 60 wonderful years. Nothing made the pair more happy or proud than their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and they were always the first to tell you about their “pretty kids.” Ginny had a special bond with each of them. Her love was unconditional, and she was always their rock, attending every recital, ball game, graduation, or celebration. She filled every room she walked into with warmth and love, and there was never any doubt how much her family meant to her. 

Ginny lived an incredibly rich life full of the things and people she loved best. She loved to cook for her family, whether it was something as simple as frying freshly caught fish that Thurman brought home (and that she served during a game of Rummy with her grandchildren), or as elaborate as the family’s annual Christmas Eve and Easter dinners. For Ginny, there was no greater joy than bringing her family together to share a meal and make happy memories. Ginny loved to talk about her family’s history and heritage. She was proud of her maiden name, Podruchny, and her family’s ancestral roots in Russia, Ukraine, and Germany. If you ever pointed out the antique photos she displayed in her home, she would eagerly tell you all about her grandparents, great-grandparents, and other relatives. She especially loved sharing stories of growing up in Bowers Hill with her parents and siblings. 

Ginny loved to travel and was always ready and willing to go on a road trip. Her travels included visits to see family in North Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Florida, Colorado, and Texas; annual summer vacations with her family in the Outer Banks; camping trips with her son’s family at Douthat State Park; trips to New York City to see the Christmas lights; and countless other destinations in between. And oh, the stories she told of her and her sisters’ adventures (and misadventures) on trips they took together were enough to leave you in stitches. She loved visiting places both new and familiar but never more than when she was getting to share the experience with her family. Ginny loved fresh produce from the garden and the rose bushes she tended around her home. She loved when Thurman would sing Dean Martin to her. She loved dogs and Hummel figurines. She loved to eat crab legs and peel shrimp around the table with her family. She loved having her great-grandchildren over for sleepovers with Gigi. She loved eating a box or two of chocolate-covered cherries around the holidays. She loved a glass of tea and having a little something sweet after a meal. She loved so many things, as that was her essence- someone who truly loved life and those she held dear. And never was there a more stylish woman doing it all- the thought and care she put into her family and home also extended to her wardrobe. Ginny loved a beautiful purse and a great pair of shoes. She was especially stunning on Sunday mornings at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, where she was a devoted member of the congregation for 44 years and served as an altar guild. She enjoyed praising the Lord with her daughter and grandchildren over the course of many of those years. Ginny was a woman of strong faith, often memorizing and reciting her favorite scriptures from the Bible. Her favorite hymn was “How Great Thou Art” and her family rejoices knowing that she is at home with Jesus! 

Ginny is survived by her daughter, Barbara Copley (Rodney), and her son, Dan Felker (Amy). Also left to cherish her memory are her beloved grandchildren, Cliff Copley, Laura Hatcher (James), Candice Carpenter (Steven), Drew Copley (Lauren), Sydney Felker, and Thurman Felker III, as well as 11 great-grandchildren and countless other extended relatives. She was preceded in death by her husband, Thurman, and each of her five siblings, all of whom she is surely embracing tightly now that they are reunited in Heaven. Those that were blessed enough to know Ginny will keep her memory alive forever and her family will carry her legacy forward in all that they do. In the words of Virginia Felker, “I have lived a long and great life!” 

A family visitation/reception will be held at 12:30 PM, with a memorial service following at 2:00 PM at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church on Saturday, October 24, 2026. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in her memory to St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church.