December 30, 1926-November 16, 2013

Virginia Lee Campbell Stanford passed away peacefully in her sleep on Saturday morning, November 16, 2013, about a month shy of her 87th birthday. She was the granddaughter of James Archibald Campbell, the founder of Campbell University, and daughter of Marion Lee Newman and Arthur Carlyle Campbell. Virginia is survived by her four children and their respective spouses: Lois Stanford (Rick Hendricks) of Las Cruces, New Mexico, Larry Stanford (Linda) of Livermore, California, Sheila Stanford Nawrocki (David) of Fort Collins, Colorado and Morna Stanford Gersho (Brian) of Danville, California. She is also survived by her six grandchildren whom she loved dearly.

Virginia was born in Florence, South Carolina on December 30, 1926 but spent her childhood in Raleigh, North Carolina, where her father, Carlyle Campbell, was president of Meredith College. From an early age, she demonstrated an affinity for music, beginning to playing the piano in earnest at age seven. She graduated from Meredith College in 1948 with a BA in Music and went on to earn her Master's in Music from Syracuse University, in New York.

Virginia married Raney Baynes Stanford in 1951, and they lived in West Lafayette, Indiana, where Raney taught English at Purdue University while Virginia balanced teaching and playing music with motherhood and being a faculty wife.

Although a medical emergency took Virginia away from her husband and four children in 1966, it did not dampen her remarkable spirit. Faced with severe health conditions, Virginia resided with her parents in Raleigh from 1967 until 1978. In 1978, Virginia came to live at Senior Citizen's Village in Dunn where for 35 years she remained active, strongly influencing staff and residents with her positive attitude, dignity, and sense of humor. During these years, she was blessed with the support and companionship of the Campbell family in Buies Creek, in particular that of her cousin, Catherine Campbell King.

Declining health required Virginia to move to Cornerstone Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Dunn in 2013. Despite her poor health, Virginia remained upbeat until her death at Cornerstone.

A family burial of her ashes by O'Quinn Peebles Funeral Home will be held at the Buies Creek Cemetery on Saturday, December 7 at 12:00pm.
Following that, a celebration of Virginia's life will be held at Memorial Baptist Church in Buies Creek, North Carolina on Saturday, December 7 at 1:00pm.
A family burial of her ashes by Oâ