ROXIE ANN Left us on February 13, 2012, just one month before her 96th birthday. Roxie was born March 15, 1916 in Neabsco, Prince William County, Virginia. One of the eighteen children born to Lillian "Ada Dell" Owens-Richardson and George Robert Robinson, she was the last surviving child. Roxie attended the only school (which had only one-room) for Black children near Occoquan, VA, where she completed the eighth grade. She said, "That was the only school they had for us back then." An old man's child (she was born 3 weeks before her father's 82nd birthday), she was an exceptionally talented person and extremely smart. From the third grade through the rest of her schooling she was used as a teacher for the other children in the school. Her mother used to go about her day singing hymns with little Roxie trailing behind, begging her to teach her the words to the songs she would sing. At a young age, her father sent off for a piano for her. She was given a few lessons but mostly taught herself, playing by-ear. After a while, the family moved to Washington, DC, where she stayed until she married Daniel Bond of Windsor, NC in 1934. They set up residence in Baltimore, MD, on Stricker St., and in 1937 they were blessed with a daughter, Sheila D. (Bond) Hawthorne. She and Dan separated in 1942, and in March of 1953 she married Roosevelt Moore of Spartanburg, SC, in Washington, DC. They left Baltimore and moved to Philadelphia following Roosevelt's cousin, Ira Tucker, who was a singer with a little gospel quartet, The Dixie Hummingbirds. This was so that Roosevelt could work promoting the group. In 1954 they were blessed with another daughter, Robin A. (Moore) Cooper Cox, and for a number of years they ran the Peedie Lou Record Shop located on Dauphin St. in N. Philadelphia. However, after 1958, she and Roosevelt separated and things became rather hectic as she moved between Baltimore, Philadelphia, Chicago, and back to Philadelphia. During that period she started working for the U.S. Postal Service and bought a house on Walnut St. in Phila. After 22 years of being apart she and Roosevelt reunited in 1980. She retired from the Postal Service and they moved back to Baltimore. While in her 80's, she went to work for the Shaw Bus Co., where she rode school buses as a bus monitor. She and Roosevelt were together until he died in 2001. Since then, Roxie has led what she called a "bi-coastal life, with only one coast." She would split her time between her daughters Sheila in Pikesville, MD, and Robin and son-in-law Errol in Tijeras, NM. From the age of sixteen, Roxie was involved with the Church. She was one of the original workers during the start-up of the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ under Bishop C. H. Mason. She could really sing and play the piano, so she was often asked to work the church circuit, going between Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, the Carolinas, and Pennsylvania. It didn't take long before she became a licensed evangelist, and whatever else she may have done in life, this is what she considered her Life's Calling. Even though, for a short while, she left the church. She and her best friend, Sister Rosetta Tharpe moved to New York City. By this time Rosetta and her guitar were becoming famous. It didn't take long for Roxie to be noticed. Being surrounded by show business people, she got to know, perform with and/or befriend many such as Red Foxx, Sarah Vaughn, Diana Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, Josephine Baker, "Hot Lips" Paige, Billy Eckstein, Tony Bennett, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and the list goes on. And then the same with ever so many more in the Gospel world as she found her way back to the church. She knew just about all of the Gospel groups and singers of her day. She first tried her hand at writing gospel music in the late 40's/early 50's when Ira told her that The Dixie Hummingbirds were in need of new material and it was suggested that she "try and come up with something." She had been writing ever since. Some of her songs are: "Jesus He Looked On Me", "I'll Keep On Living After I Die", "Will the Lord Be With Me", "When I Found Jesus Christ", "Smooth Sailing", "It Won't Be Long", and "Love Your Fellowman." In 1989 she received the Philadelphia Music Award from the Philadelphia Music Foundation for "Best Songwriter in Gospel Music". Lately she has served as an information source for documentaries and books about Sister Rosetta Tharpe, The Dixie Hummingbirds, other music greats, and on the formation of The Church of God In Christ. Roxie loved this nation and was very politically active. She had an on-going correspondence with many government officials; beginning with the Eisenhower administration. As a Bible scholar, she knew scripture and had a very developed knowledge of right, wrong, good and bad. She served as a constant reminder of what was right and what was wrong according to God's word. Not long ago, Sen. Ted Kennedy sent for her to attend a reception held in the Baltimore area. As he walked in the door, he was heard to call out, "Where's Roxie?" She was very active, in every sense, until the moment the Lord took her home. Since her father died in 1942 at the age of 108, everyone expected her to go on forever. She's left her daughters, Robin and Sheila; her son-in-law Errol; six grandchildren, William Hawthorne, Burshia McCoy, Shedana Patterson, Jennifer Cooper, Dr. Anthony Cooper, and Jonathan Cooper; 20 great-grandchildren; and 17 great-great-grandchildren; a multitude of much loved nieces and nephews, and another multitude of much loved people she adopted along the way as her children, to mourn this tremendous loss. There will be a public viewing 24 Feb, 2012 at the Vaughn C. Greene Funeral Home, 8728 Liberty Rd., Randallstown, MD 21133, from 4:00 to 8:00 pm. A funeral service is scheduled for 25 Feb, 2012 at the Blessed Trinity Church of Deliverance, 4535 Old Court Rd., Pikesville, MD 21208, at 10:30 am. Interment will be at the Delaney Valley Cemetery, 200 E. Padonia Rd., Timonium, MD.
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