Viola Nell Stapleton, 81, Reston resident and wife, mother and grandmother, died Feb. 25, at Capital Hospice in Arlington. She had cancer.
Stapleton was born on Dec. 20, 1923, in Albany Ga. She lived in Albany all of her young life, graduating from Albany High School and later working there for Pepsi Cola and the Georgia Cigar Company.
In 1947 she married Charles Callis Stapleton, a young sailor returning from the Pacific in World War II. They eventually moved from Albany to Atlanta, Ga., where they raised their family. Subsequent moves led them to Crested Butte, Colo., and Gulf Breeze, Fla., and then to Reston in 1976.
Stapleton was preceded in death by her husband, who died in 1996. After his death she moved to the Hunters Woods Fellowship House, where she made many friends and became an active member of the 30-Plus Club, which elected her Woman of the Year in 2001.
She is survived by her four daughters, Kay Colbert of Reston, Joy Chalk of Potomac Falls, Jill Devine of Potomac Falls and Dixie Harding of Leesburg. Other survivors include two brothers, Jack Chancey and Albert Chancey, who live in Georgia, and 14 grandchildren, who all live locally, Rita and Holly Colbert; Bradley and Kathryn Knox, Rebecca, Joseph, Thomas and Raymond Chalk; Charles, Michelle, Philip and Elizabeth Devine; Matthew Pearson; and Mylee Harding. She also leaves behind her dearest friend since childhood, Margaret Foster, of McDonough, Ga., who supported her steadfastly throughout her long illness.
Funeral services were held at Adams-Green Funeral Home in Herndon March 2, with the Rev. Suzanne Rudiselle and the Rev. David Berg officiating. Interment will be at Quantico National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Capital Hospice, Attn: Development Office, 6565 Arlington Blvd., Suite 500, Falls Church, VA 22042.