Barbara “Bobbie” Saunders, 84, of Grafton, passed away Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019, at home with her family by her side.
Bobbie was a proud Carolinian born Dec. 11, 1934, in Wilson, North Carolina, to her parents, Theodore Clyde Tilghman Jr. and Gwendolyn (Brown) Tilghman. Her family moved when she was young to the Oceanview area of Norfolk. She graduated from Granby High School, where she discovered a knack and desire to work with children inspiring her to obtain a degree in elementary education from Atlantic Christian College.
Bobbie was a teacher through and through. She taught school at Dare Elementary School in York County for more than 30 years. She also taught Sunday school at her church, tutored and helped teach English as a Second Language, and taught water aerobics at the local YMCA. She loved each of her students, and it was obvious by the greetings she received everywhere she would go, that they loved her.
There is nothing Bobbie loved more than spending time visiting with her family and friends, playing and listening to music, reading a good book and telling a good story. She was a devout Christian and exemplified this through helping others and volunteering at the food bank. She touched many lives and will be missed.
Bobbie is survived by her husband, Raymond Saunders; children and their spouses, Michael McClenney and Michelle Smith, Lynda Summers and Peggy Reynolds and Nancy McClenney; grandchildren, Amanda, Joel, Joshua, James, Jonathan and Nikki; many great-grandchildren; brother and sisters, Nancy Singleton, Clyde “Bubba” Tilghman and Susan Hawthorne; as well as many beloved nephews and nieces.
Her family would like you to share in celebrating her life at 11 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 14, at Faith Outreach Church, 3105 West Mercury Blvd., Hampton. A reception will follow the celebration.
Share online condolences with the family at Cremation Society of Virginia.
