Heavens gates opened wide for a beautiful mother, Mabel “Virginia” Kirby, 92, of Morganton, NC to be with her precious Lord Jesus, on Mothers’s Day, May 8, 2016.

Born in Burke County, NC on October 21, 1923, she was the daughter of the late Joseph Pinkney Branch and Alvina Heele Branch. She graduated from Drexel High School and Kings Business College in Charlotte, NC. Virginia was a member of North Morganton Baptist Church where she was a Sunday school teacher. She was a missions volunteer with North Carolina Baptists in Ukraine. Mrs. Kirby was known and loved around the world.

A beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Virginia is survived by her sons, Gene Kirby of Morganton and Gary Kirby of Melbourne, FL; daughters, Carolyn Kirby Freeland and her husband, Mike, of Charlotte, NC and Judy Kirby George and her husband, Sam, of Lenoir, NC; grandchildren, Natalie Freeland Lodato and her husband, Rich, Kirby Freeland and his wife, Rebecca, Gary A. Kirby and his wife, Christina, Scot Kirby and his wife, Melinda, Richard George and his wife, Candace; great-grandchildren, Lia Lodato, Grant Lodato, Hunter Kirby, Christiana and Camden George; and special friends, Regina Cash and Jim George.

In addition to her parents, Mrs. Kirby was preceded in death by her husband, Albert Leon Kirby; brothers, Leroy, Bud, Cecil, and Don; and sisters, Ruby, Catherine, Mary, Minnie, Midge, and Faye.

The family will receive friends from 6 – 8 p.m., Wednesday, May 11, 2016 at Sossoman Funeral Home. The funeral will be held at 3 p.m., Thursday, May 12, 2016 at North Morganton Baptist Church with the Rev. Kenneth Baker officiating. Burial will follow at Forest Hill Cemetery. At other times the family will be at the home of Sam and Judy George.