Wannetta’s Obituary Wannetta Thompson was born October 8, 1953 in Holyoke, MA to Frankie Mae and Dock J. McCoy. She was born eighth of nine siblings: Minniett, William (deceased), Edward, David (deceased), Jonnie, Louie, Mary Lou and Denise. She accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior at the early age of 7 years old and loved and served the Lord all her life.
She grew up in Bethlehem Baptist Community Church where she sang in the Youth and Young Adult Choir. She was a Debutante for the City of Holyoke in 1969. She was also a Cheerleader and a member of the Secretary Professional Club.
Wannetta graduated from Holyoke High School in 1971. Wannetta married Gregory Thompson June 30, 1973 and relocated to New Haven, CT. Greg and Wannetta welcomed their first child, a son, Gregory and eight years later their daughter, Juanita.
In New Haven, Wannetta became church clerk at Christ Chapel Baptist Church. Wannetta was very talented and active. She coached the Nationally known Double-Dutch Team, Black Magic of New Haven, Connecticut.
After many years in New Haven, Wannetta relocated back to her hometown of Holyoke to be closer to her mother and siblings. She wanted her children to experience a great life in every way. She instilled the importance of faith in God, hard work, integrity, intelligence and overall family.
An active volunteer within her community, Wannetta was a troop leader for her daughter’s Girl Scout group, Troop 366, where she mentored more than 20 girls ranging in ages from 5 to 11 for more than five years. She also volunteered at Holyoke Geriatrics center where she hosted bingo, made crafts and activities for the residents. Ministry was very important as she truly understood serving God and His people.
She played an active role on the Sound Ministry; she also drove the Church van transporting members of the congregation to and from church. Wannetta was also a Church Clerk at Bethlehem. She also made deliveries to homes for the Culinary Ministry.
Each year, Wannetta donated Christmas gifts and Easter baskets to hundreds of children of Bethlehem Baptist and Morning Star Church. Outside of Ministry, Wannetta remained active in the Community. She was a Member of the IBPOE Obie Knox Elks as a Daughter.
She was also a member of Post 25 of the American Legion. Wannetta was President of the Holyoke-Chicopee NAACP for many years where she worked alongside former Mayors Daniel Szockowicz; Mike Sullivan and Elaine Pluta on social justice matters within the City of Holyoke. By trade, Wannetta also worked as an Insurance Claims Adjuster for St. Paul’s Insurance.
An entrepreneur and woman with many talents, Wannetta opened her own small business, Woman of Virtue in 2001. She hosted annual fashion shows and worked diligently to make every customer feel beautiful, gracious, full of style and one-of-a-kind. She loved to make everyone she encountered feel special and loved to design and decorate for their special events.
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