It is with great sadness that we share the news that LaVerne Stokes, former leader and co-executive director at Sandtown Habitat, passed away on May 18. LaVerne was a pillar in the community and Habitat for Humanity. We were fortunate to have her be part of the Habitat family. She was a leader to all of us, to some an educator, and to others is a second mother. Her footprint on the community of Sandtown will forever be remembered. LaVerne was so centrally connected to Sandtown that her life and presence touched everyone in it for decades—all of the decades of her life. Sandtown born and raised, she took on many roles in building her community, including hundreds of homes along with Sandtown Habitat, and later with Habitat Chesapeake, but her main role in community building was, and will always be, the heart that she had for people, her community, and all of God’s people.
LaVerne’s love for her neighbor—and everyone was her neighbor—was profound, and everlasting. We know that her family and friends, and the many people she walked alongside to build new hope and new futures are grieving now, as we do.
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