Virginia Wesleyan honors and remembers the lives of three pioneers and a beloved professor, who created visions, challenged thoughts, encouraged debate, and nurtured friendships – all trademarks of the college community we’ve come to love. It is, in part, because of their passion for education that we enjoy our 300-acre oasis of free thought and enlightenment. Their contributions will never be forgotten.
Jerry G. Bray, Jr.
Jerry G. Bray, Jr.
When Judge Jerry Bray became chairman of the Board of Trustees, the college had no buildings, no teachers and no students. A charter trustee and chairman for 30 years, this man helped to lay the roots for Virginia Wesleyan College. Judge Bray died May 13 at the age of 91 at his home at Westminster-Canterbury Retirement Community in Virginia Beach.
A native of South Norfolk, he attended Duke University and Duke Law School. Judge Bray was admitted to the Virginia State Bar in 1941 and retired in 1980 as the senior judge of the 1st Circuit of Virginia.
During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy, and was released from active duty in 1946 with the rank of commander. He returned briefly to active duty during the Korean War.
A lifelong member of Chesapeake Avenue United Methodist Church, Judge Bray was a prominent United Methodist layman. He served his local church as lay leader and Sunday school teacher for more than 40 years and was Virginia Annual Conference lay leader for eight years. From 1964 to 1992 he served as a delegate to General Conference and also played an influential role at the general and jurisdictional levels of the United Methodist Church.
In 1995, the same year he retired from Virginia Wesleyan, t he Virginia Annual Conference honored him with the John Wesley Distinguished Education Award for his leadership in higher education and church contribution. Village I was officially dedicated to Judge Bray in 2000 in honor of his longstanding commitment to the college.
He was married to the former Ruth Crutchfield for 58 years. They had four sons, six grandchildren and three great grandchildren. Donations in Judge Bray’s memory may be made to Virginia Wesleyan College or Chesapeake Avenue United Methodist Church.
Catherin Cookson,
J.D., Ph.D.
Catharine Cookson, J.D., Ph.D.
Catharine Cookson, J.D., Ph.D., founding director of Virginia Wesleyan College’s Center for the Study of Religious Freedom and a native of New Brunswick, N.J., passed away June 16 at home following a long and courageous battle with breast cancer.
Dr. Cookson had served as the director of the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom since 1998, creating a “safe zone” where people of various faith backgrounds could discuss religious issues in a fair and impartial manner.
Dr. Cookson and the center have received awards from the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ), the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and Public Policy, the Jewish Community Center of South Hampton Roads, the Muslim Community of Tidewater, the Virginia Beach Human Rights Commission and the YWCA of South Hampton Roads.
She also advanced religious freedom through her well-received monograph on the First Amendment, Regulating Religion (Oxford University Press, 2001), and through her Encyclopedia of Religious Freedom (Routledge Press, 2003). Both volumes are substantial and important resources for scholars and laypeople around the country.
She received her bachelor’s degree in history from Mundelein College in Chicago, and a J.D. from Rutgers University Law School in Newark, N.J. In 1992, she received a master’s degree in religious studies from the University of Virginia and a Ph.D. at Indiana University in 1997. Dr. Cookson lived in Norfolk since 1998, where she was an active member of Christ and Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church.
Dr. Cookson is survived by her husband and daughter, John and Rachael Born; her mother; three brothers; and two sisters. Contributions may be made in her memory to the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom at Virginia Wesleyan College.
Betty Jefferson
Harris, Ph.D .
Betty Jefferson Harris, Ph.D.
Betty Jefferson Harris, Ph.D., beloved professor emeritus, died June 26 as the result of complications from a massive cerebral hemorrhage. A native of Danville, Va., Harris was a lifelong Methodist and member of the Calvary United Methodist Church. At the time of her death, her membership was with the Virginia Beach United Methodist Church where she served in many capacities.
Dr. Harris earned the Junior College Literacy Diploma from Averett College; a bachelor of arts degree from Longwood College, which presented her with the Alumni Achievement Award in 1994; a master’s degree in teaching science from the College of William and Mary; and a doctor of philosophy degree from Virginia Tech.
A beloved teacher and professor, Dr. Harris taught at high schools in Newport News and Danville before coming to Virginia Wesleyan in 1975. Dr. Harris received the Samuel Nelson Grey Distinguished Teaching Award in 1981 and 1986, and at the time of her retirement in 2000, she was professor of biology and chemistry and chairperson of the division of natural sciences and mathematics.
In October 2003, the college dedicated the revitalized Betty Jefferson Harris, Ph.D., Cellular and Molecular Biology Laboratory in honor of her longstanding devotion to Virginia Wesleyan and her students.
Exceptionally devoted to her students, Dr. Harris kept in touch with many throughout the years and always seemed to be excited by their accomplishments.
Dr. Harris is survived by her husband, James F. Harris, Ph.D. The family asks that donations be made to a school, college, charity, or place of worship to honor Harris’ genuine concern for others.
Joseph S. Johnston.
Joseph S. Johnston
The Rev. Dr. Joseph S. Johnston, first board chairman and president of Virginia Wesleyan College, died April 8 at the age of 93.
A Farmville native and longtime resident of White Stone, Johnston graduated from the University of Virginia and Yale Divinity School. He received the doctor of divinity degree from Randolph-Macon College.
Dr. Johnston was an ordained minister and served as superintendent of the Norfolk District of the United Methodist Church from 1959-1965. He served as minister of Epworth UMC in Norfolk from 1948 until 1952 and Reveille UMC in Richmond from 1952-1959.
Dr. Johnston was also superintendent of the Petersburg District from 1972 until his retirement in 1978. He was part of the Ecumenical Conference in Oxford England in 1951 and served as president of the Virginia Council of Churches from 1959 until 1962. His collegiate involvement also extends to Ferrum Junior College as a trustee from 1960 to 1965.
Dr. Johnston was key to increasing the volumes in the library and in 1995; he was honored with the naming of a residence hall in Village II. The Virginia Annual Conference also honored him in 2003 with the John Wesley Distinguished Education Award for his contribution to higher education.
He and his wife, Edna Cralle Saunders Johnston, were married for 68 years. They had two daughters, one son, six grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Memorials may be made to Virginia Wesleyan College or White Stone United Methodist Church.