William A. Harding, “Billy”, 73, of Mechanicsville, died peacefully at home, Sunday, July 11, 2010 surrounded by his loving family. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Lydia E. Harding; son, William “Blair” Harding (Angie); daughter, Cynthia H. Tuck (Glenn); four grandchildren, Jennifer and Christian Tuck, Caleb and Brooke Harding; great-grandchild, Makayla Tuck; brother, James Robert Harding (Gayle) of Bartlett, Tenn.; a special niece, Sharon S. Mathews (Rick); many nieces and nephews and a host of friends. Mr. Harding retired after 37 years of service with Virginia Power. The family received friends Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at Nelsen Funeral Home, 4650 S. Laburnum Avenue, where services were held Thursday, July 15, 2010. Graveside services were held at Washington Memorial Park.

Harry E. Harkins, 94, of Richmond, went to be with the Lord on July 4, 2010. Harry was a resident of Hanover Health and Rehabilitation in Mechanicsville. He is preceded in death by his daughter, Sheila Ann Harkins, and his granddaughter, Kristina Harkins Vaughn. He is survived by his devoted wife of 74 years, Agnes Harkins; three children, Harry Harkins Jr. and his wife, Darlene, Leisa George and her husband, Chuck, and Don Edgell and his wife, Lorena; five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. He retired from the Ohio River Sand and Gravel Company where he was a dredge operator for 40 years.  He was a member of Aldersgate United Methodist Church, Richmond, VA., and a former Member of Fairlawn Baptist Church, Parkersburg. WV.  Harry was born and lived in Parkersburg WV until 15 years after retiring.  He moved to Richmond in 1993 to be closer to his daughter. He lived a great long life, loving his family and working hard at everything he did. The family wants to thank Hanover Health & Rehabilitation in Mechanicsville, for the loving care they provided their husband and father during his last days on this earth.

Lois L. James, age 93, of Mechanicsville, passed away on July 11, 2010. She was preceded in death by her husband, John M. James Jr. She is survived by her two loving daughters, Alice Revels and Betty Tigert; one loving son, Johnny James; five grandchildren, Cherie Carroll, Keith Garrett, Ernie Revels Jr., Kimberly Sidhu and Gwen Featherston; eight great- grandchildren, Misty, Joshua, Coleman, Malcolm, Jespar, Samantha, Leslie and Ashley; and eight great-great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. The family received friends Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at the Monaghan Funeral Home, 7300 Creighton Pkwy., Mechanicsville. Graveside services were held Thursday, July 15, 2010 at Signal Hill Memorial Park.

Sam Alton Martin, age 90, of Mechanicsville, entered into God’s care peacefully Saturday evening, July 10, 2010. He is survived by his beloved wife of 68 years, Anna Pauline “Polly” Martin; his devoted daughters, Barbara M. Stein (Jim) and Betty M. Martin (Wayne); grandsons, Adam G. Martin, David A. Stein, and Michael Stein; a granddaughter, Rebecca S. Gardner (Scott); great-grandchildren, Joshua, Joanna, and Ashley Stein; a sister-in-law, Marie Martin; and several nieces and nephews. Mr. Martin was a Staff Sergeant in the Army Air Corps and served in World War II and was a member of Mechanicsville Presbyterian Church. The family received friends Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at the Monaghan Funeral Home, 7300 Creighton Pkwy., Mechanicsville, where services were held Wednesday, July 14, 2010. Graveside services were held at Forest Lawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Mechanicsville Presbyterian Church, 7339 Atlee Road, Mechanicsville, Va. 23111.

Marilyn Ayers Patrick, 70, of Hanover County, died Friday, July 16, 2010. She was preceded in death by her mother, Lucy P. Ayers; and father, Julian B. Ayers; her brother, George “Froggy” Ayers; and her son, Jimmy “Bubba” Hall. She is survived by her husband, Kay C. Patrick; three daughters, Sharon E. Crawley (Michael), Melissa A. Patrick, and Cheryl F. Patrick; and three grandchildren, Dalton, Cody, and Colton Crawley. She is also survived by her brother, Ben Ayers (Jane); and her sister, Polly Buchanan (Buster); as well as many nieces and nephews. Mrs. Patrick worked with her loving husband at K&M Auto Service for over 30 years. She was an avid gardener and a loving and devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. The family received friends on Sunday, July 18, 2010 at the Nelsen Funeral Home - Reid Chapel, 412 S. Washington Highway, Ashland. A funeral service was held Monday, July 19, 2010 also in the Nelsen Funeral Home’s chapel. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Virginia, 7231 Forest Avenue, Suite 100, Richmond, Va. 23226.

Kirby Hugh Porter, of Hanover County, died on July 13, 2010. He is survived by his wife of 17 years, Jennifer N. Porter, and was the loving father of four children, Christine, John “Jack,” Caroline and Kathryn. Kirby is also survived by his sister, Margot Dillard and husband, Dave; three nephews, Thomas, Matthew and wife, Cheryl, and Steven Dillard; three great-nieces and one great-nephew. Kirby was born on May 5, 1960 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was a graduate of both Radford University and George Mason University School of Law. He was a man of sincere principles, strong values, and was known by his family and close friends for his humorous outlook on life and his passion to make his community a better place. Dedicated to public service, he was an Assistant Common-wealth’s Attorney in Richmond before moving to Hanover, serving four years there as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney. In 1999, Kirby was elected Commonwealth’s Attorney for Hanover County, and was re-elected for a second term in 2003. He earned national attention in 2002 when skillfully assisting state and federal prosecutors with the prosecution of sniper suspects, John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo after a near fatal shooting in Ashland during a killing rampage that spanned multiple states. Other notable accomplishments included the exoneration of Marvin Anderson, a local man wrongfully convicted of a 1982 rape, and his prosecution of John Bradley Crawford in the 1980 killing of six year old Alexander Paul Glanz. In 2008, Kirby officially opened his own successful private practice, Kirby Porter Attorney at Law, assisting citizens in all matters of law. He was Past President and a Board Member of the Hanover Ruritan Club, served on the Bar Associations for both Hanover and Richmond, and also served on the Board of the Hanover Domestic Violence Task Force. Kirby was a member of American Legion Post 175, and the Community Criminal Justice Board. The family received friends from 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at the Mechanicsville Chapel of Bennett Funeral Home, 8014 Lee-Davis Rd., where services will be held on Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 3 p.m. Graveside services will be private. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Porter Children’s Education Fund, an account set up for Kirby’s children’s education expenses at Wachovia Bank. Online condolences may be made at bennettfuneralhomes.com.

Ollie Lewis Sherman Sr., 88, departed this life on Thursday, July 8, 2010. He was preceded in death by his wife of over 55 years, Edna Cephas Sherman; his eldest grandson, Paul Thomas Bryan; his mother, Rosa Loney; father, Moses Early Sherman Sr.; three brothers, Moses Early Jr., Russell and Clarence; and one sister, Beatrice. Ollie was educated in Hanover County Public Schools as was customary at the time. The responsibility of helping to support his family came at a young age and Ollie left school at a young age and embarked upon a lifelong career of providing for his family. Ollie was known to be exceptionally gifted with his hands and this proved to be true all his life as he became a master plumber and an expert farmer. After a stint of being employed by several governmental agencies as a plumber, Ollie started his own plumbing and heating business while simultaneously dabbling in farming. After all of his children were elementary school age, Ollie and Edna began farming as a hobby, which grew to such an extent as to be substantial support for maintaining a wife and home while clothing, feeding and educating four children. Ollie retired from plumbing and devoted his time to his true love farming. He farmed until his health would no longer allow him. He became widely known for his prowess at growing tasty collard greens and as well became known county wide for his “even sweeter sugar corn”. Hard work was no stranger to this small featured giant of a man as his family and friends are apt to extol. He is survived by three sons, Anthony, Ollie Jr. and Michael (Dorothy); one daughter, Valerie Bryan (Leroy); two grandsons, Jason and Steven Bryan; two stepgrandchildren; Ray and Lisa Hardison; one stepgreat-grandson, Gabriel Hardison; three brothers, George (Edith), James (Annie) and Leroy (Miriam); two sisters, Clara Mitchell (Heywood) and Lottie Blocker (Joe); two sisters-in-law, Charlotte and Silvia Sherman; a host of other relatives and friends. Remains rest at Walter J. Manning Funeral Home, 700 North 25th St., where the family received friends Tuesday, July 13, 2010. Funeral services were held Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at First Shiloh Baptist Church, 8150 Walnut Grove Rd., Mechanicsville, Va. Rev. Dr. R. Neal Siler pastor, officiated. Graveside services were held at Sherman-Cephas Family Cemetery, Mechanicsville, Va. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to either the Sherman-Cephas Scholarship Fund at Norfolk State University Office of Development, 700 Park Ave., Suite 410, Norfolk, Va. 23504 or Elk Hill Farm, P.O. Box 99, Goochland, Va. 23063 in memory of Paul Thomas Bryan.

Bonnie Rae Soignoli, 75, of Mechanicsville, died Wednesday, July 14, 2010. She was the daughter of the late Hackney and Ova Poole Pierce, and was preceded in death by her husband, Frank Soignoli. She is survived by her son, Mark Wayne Soignoli and his wife, Pamela; daughter, Cindy Eubank and her husband, Mitchell; six grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and her twin sister, Lucille Luck and her husband, Al. She was retired from American General Finance where she worked for 37 years as an accounting specialist and was an active member in ACCA Temple Provetts. The family received friends on Friday, July 16, 2010 at the Bennett Funeral Home, 8014 Lee-Davis Road, Mechanicsville, where funeral services were conducted on Saturday, July 17, 2010. Graveside services followed at Westhampton Memorial Park.

John Spencer Stycos, Col. (Ret.), 77, of Glen Allen, died Monday, July 12, 2010. Son, Spencer James Stycos, preceded him in death. His wife, Pam; son, Peter J. Stycos (wife, Elizabeth); grandchildren, Spencer Ross, John Alexander “Alex,” Patricia Anne Phelps; sister, Helen Read (husband, Donald); and nephew, Christopher Donald of Arizona, survive him. Colonel Stycos was a Vietnam veteran, served in the U.S. Army Artillery for 27 years, and retired in 1981 with honors. Military graveside services were held for family and friends at Arlington National Cemetery, Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2010 at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) or Disabled American Veterans (DAV).

Walter William Thurston, “Billy”, 55, of Glen Allen, passed away on July 14, 2010. He is survived by a host of nieces, nephews, and friends. A casual outdoor memorial service will be held next Sunday, July 25, 2010 at 1 p.m. at 9420 Hoehns Road, Glen Allen.