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Virginia Hazel (Rogers) DeOstiguy
December 19, 1920 – April 10, 2001

Virginia was born at home on December 19, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents were Warren and Anna Rogers. She had one sister, Doris, born the year before her birth. She grew up in Jamaica; attended a Lutheran Church where she sang in the choir; and graduated from Jamaica High School in Jan. 1939. After graduation, she worked as a secretary for Timex and then for American Airlines at LaGuardia Airport.

She met George DeOstiguy, her future husband, at a rollerskating rink in Jamaica. He had also graduated from Jamaica High School, but eight years before her! They enjoyed many evenings together at the rink, not only skating but dancing on skates to the music from the organ. After a four year courtship, they were married in Jamaica on Feb. 19, 1944. Virginia was walked down the aisle by an uncle since her father was an officer in the Navy Sea Bees and was serving in the south Pacific during World War 11. George also worked for American Airlines, as a mechanics instructor and was a portrait/wedding photographer part-time. While living in Flushing, New York, their first child, Yvonne, was born in 1945 and their second child, Virginia (Ginger), was born in 1947. In 1954, while George was working for Grumman Aerospace, they moved out to Centereach, Long Island, where their third child, Suzanne, was born in 1955. Eventually, Virginia became a secretary for the Middle Country School District where she worked until her retirement. She has the distinction of being the first secretary of the new Holbrook Road Elementary School when it was built in 1959, and where Ginger was a student in the sixth grade. Ginger enjoyed helping her mother in the office many times after school and during lunch time.

Virginia and George loved to travel and took many, many trips all over Europe, the United States, Canada and Hawaii. One of their most memorable trips was in 1982 when they visited the Holy Land and also Egypt. After they both retired, they bought a van and discovered the joy of camping! This was a whole new adventure for them! They enjoyed many camping trips across the states, staying in many beautiful campgrounds and state parks, seeing many beautiful sites and visiting friends and relatives along the way.

Virginia loved to feed the birds year round in her backyard and found great pleasure in watching them and learning about them. She found much amusement in boasting that her birds ate anything she put out for them, including table scraps and spaghetti! We always said that the birds in her neighborhood had to be the fattest birds around! She also loved to read and she especially loved to knit and crochet. Over the years she has made numerous afghans, bedspreads, blankets and she found great joy in making beautiful baby blankets for every grandchild, great-grandchild, and for shower gifts for new babies.

While attending Calvary Baptist Church in Port Jefferson in the early 1980’s and after hearing Pastor Fritjofson present the Good News of the Gospel, Virginia prayed to receive the Lord Jesus as her savior. She has faithfully attended Hope Reformed Baptist Church since it was founded in 1996 where her son-in-law, Richard, was also her pastor.

Virginia DeOstiguy celebrated her 80^th birthday on Dec. 19, 2000. She went home to be with the Lord on Tuesday, April 10, 2001. We rejoice in knowing that she is with her Father in heaven.