Virginia

Virginia Huffman Obituary February 27, 2026 – Ott & Lee Funeral Homes

Published

2 months ago

on

March 1, 2026

By

Press Room

Virginia Huffman Obituary February 27, 2026 – Ott & Lee Funeral Homes

Mary “Virginia” Huffman, 82, of Pelahatchie, Mississippi, passed away on February 27, 2026.

Born on February 28, 1943, in Morton, Mississippi, she was the daughter of Carl and Nannie Mae Bradshaw. She married the love of her life, Jimmy Lavell Huffman, on June 14, 1963, and together they built a life rooted in faith, family, and hard work. Virginia devoted nearly 50 years to teaching high school math, beginning at Morton High School and later serving at East Rankin Academy. Generations of students were shaped by her steady guidance, high expectations, and deep belief in their potential. Many would say they entered college prepared because they had learned from “Mrs. Huffman.” Her students knew the famous “Mrs. Huffman look,” but no one understood it quite like her children and grandchildren. To many, she was more than a teacher—she was a mentor, encourager, and second mother.

A faithful member of Cross Roads Baptist Church, Virginia was a true matriarch and prayer warrior whose life was anchored in her love for the Lord. She woke each morning to study the Word of God and carried that faith into every conversation, classroom, and season of life. She played piano and organ, sang in the choir, and on Sunday mornings could often be found at home practicing the piano before church—something her family dearly loved listening to. She served her church and community with quiet devotion. Whether tutoring students during the summer, helping families in need, or visiting church members, she consistently lived out a servant’s heart.

She loved farm life—raising chickens and cows, cutting hay, tending her flower beds, and cooking for the people she loved. She was especially known for her strawberry pies, egg custard, and caramel cake (see Cheryl Moore for the recipe). She faithfully attended her grandchildren’s sporting events and found her greatest joy in cheering on her family. She loved deeply and wholeheartedly, treating not only her own children and grandchildren as treasures, but embracing many others in her community as if they were her own.

She is survived by her husband, Jimmy Lavell Huffman; her children, Connie Goodman (Mike), Karen Jones, and Jade Huffman; her grandchildren, Christin (Colby) (Candace), Christopher (Victoria), Dillon, Marley, Halle (Elijah), Kyla Kate, and Eli; her great-grandchildren, Autumn, Titus, Sophia, Liam, Scarlett, Luke, and Ava; and her siblings, Paul (Joyce) and Delilah.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Carl and Nannie Mae Bradshaw; her in-laws, Clyde Sr. and Zora Huffman; her son, Scot Huffman; and her sisters, May Erving and Maxine Strong.

Virginia will be remembered as a woman of unwavering faith, steadfast strength, and extraordinary love. Her legacy lives on in the family she nurtured, the students she prepared, and the countless lives she covered in prayer.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 pm – until on Sunday, March 1, 2026 at Cross Roads Baptist Church in Pelahatchie and again on Monday, March 2, 2026 from 12 pm – 1 pm.

Services will be held at 1pm Monday, March 2, 2026 at Cross Roads Baptist Church with burial in the church cemetery.

Bro. John Vaughn, Bro. Gary Morris and Bro. Steven Platt will officate the services.

Pallbearers will be Tim Wolverton, Colby Boyd, Christopher Wilson, Dillon Pettigrew, Eli Huffman and Elijah Moore.

Ott and Lee Funeral Home in Morton is honored to serve the Huffman family.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Cross Roads Baptist Church Building Fund.

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Virginia

Virginia Supreme Court voids voter-approved redistricting referendum

Published

3 hours ago

on

May 11, 2026

By

Press Room

Virginia Supreme Court voids voter-approved redistricting referendum

On May 8, the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the General Assembly violated the state constitution when it tried to redraw congressional districts, nullifying the results of the April election in which Virginians narrowly approved redistricting.

Electoral maps are usually redrawn once every 10 years, but multiple states began redrawing them early after President Donald Trump urged Republicans to redraw district lines to ensure more favorable results for the party in the November 2026 elections.

This started a nationwide political battle for control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Texas was the first of several states to redraw districts favoring Republicans, and Virginia Democrats had proposed a constitutional amendment to allow redistricting in order to favor Democrats.

As of May 8, Republicans had initiated redistricting efforts in eight states; Democrats had led redistricting efforts in three states, including Virginia, the Washington Post reported.

In April, Virginia voters supported the redistricting amendment with 51.7% voting for it out of more than 3 million ballots cast. It could have given Democrats up to four extra seats in the U.S. House, according to the Washington Post (subscription required).

But the Virginia Supreme Court, in a 4-3 ruling, found that there were procedural errors in how the Democratic legislature handled the process, nullifying the election results.

The Virginia Constitution says that proposed constitutional amendments must pass in the General Assembly twice before the public can vote on them: once before an election of the House of Delegates, and again after an election. According to the Virginia Supreme Court majority opinion written by Justice D. Arthur Kelsey, early voting for the general election had already been open for six weeks when the General Assembly cast its first vote on the amendment in October 2025, with more than 1.3 million voters having already cast their ballots.

“This violation irreparably undermines the integrity of the resulting referendum vote and renders it null and void,” the court majority opinion stated.

The court’s ruling means the state reverts to the old district maps adopted in 2021. Based on those maps, Virginia voters elected six Democrats and five Republicans to the U.S. House.

Following the court’s ruling, some Virginia Democrats who planned to run for the U.S. House told the New York Times that they have to abandon their campaigns, while others, such as Tom Perriello who is running for the 5th District, face much more difficult campaigns.

Virginia Democrats on Friday asked the court to pause the nullification of the referendum results while they prepare their appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to VPM.

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