Mr. Bernard "Bernie" Levie Henderson Jr.

Bernie is survived by his wife of 51 years, Marie Jimenez Henderson; their daughter Carrie, her husband Darren Caumont, and their children, Trainor and Evette; their daughter Angela Jones, and her children, Mackenzie and Hollee; his siblings, Kendra Penrod (John) of Nebraska, Dale Henderson of Texas, Gail Shaw (John) of Texas, Linda Lindsay (Eddie) of Texas, Rebecca Whaley (Willard) of Florida, Vernon (Jody) of Florida, Barbara Jones of Florida, Lawrence (Wendy) of Florida and Mary (Tommy) Brown of Florida. He is also survived by several nephews, nieces and cousins.

Bernie was preceded in death by his father, Levie Bernard "Lee" Henderson Sr.; his mother, Thelma Henderson; and his son-in-law, Josh Jones.

Bernie was an active member of Grace Baptist Church of Richmond since 1963, serving several terms as Chair of the Board of Deacons, Chair of the Board of Trustees, Moderator and many other positions of service. He served as Moderator of the Richmond Baptist Association and a member of the governing body of the Baptist General Association of Virginia until he resigned that position in protest of the Association's dismissal of a church for ordaining an openly gay person.

Bernie had a lifelong interest in politics, beginning with campaigning door-to-door for John F. Kennedy in 1960, at the age of 9. He was active in Democratic campaigns at every level, including serving as Coordinator of Volunteers for J. Sargeant Reynolds' House of Delegates campaign in 1965. He was campaign manager for 2 successful re-election campaigns for Delegate Junie L. Bradshaw and 2 for State Senator William F. Parkerson, Jr. He served as Chair of the Henrico County Democratic Committee, Secretary of the Third Congressional District Democratic Committee, Vice Chair of the Seventh Congressional District Democratic Committee and he represented Henrico County on the Democratic State Central Committee for several years.

Bernie's career in public service began when he was a high school student and was Legislative Assistant to Delegates Junie L. Bradshaw, William Ferguson Reid and Senator William F. Parkerson, Jr. While in college, he was a member of the staff of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, W. Pat Jennings. His first position after college was Administrator of the Virginia Bureau of Insurance for 2 years. He then served for 8 years as the Assistant to the Commissioners of the State Corporation Commission, including responsibilities as liaison to the General Assembly, Congress, the Governor's Office and other governmental entities. Governor Robb appointed him Director of the Virginia Department of Commerce, Governor Baliles appointed him Director of the Virginia

Department of Health Professions and he was re-appointed to that position by Governor Wilder. At the conclusion of the Wilder Administration, he retired from Virginia government, and returned when Governor Warner appointed him Senior Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth; Governor Kaine re-appointed him to that position and during that term he also served as interim Secretary of the Commonwealth and acting Associate Chief of Staff. He retired from Virginia government for the second time at the conclusion of the Kaine Administration.

Bernie also represented Virginia on the Board of the Council of State Governments from 1986 to 1990 and he was President of the Virginia State Agency Group in 1988 and 1989.

After retiring from full-time government service, he accepted gubernatorial appointments from Governors McAuliffe and Northam to serve 2 terms on the Virginia War Memorial Board, 2 terms on the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Council and 1 term on the Board of Pharmacy.

During the eight years between the Wilder and Warner Administrations, Bernie negotiated acquisitions of funeral homes and cemeteries for The Loewen Group for 4 years, and for the next 4 years he managed the company's 15 funeral homes and 7 cemeteries in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D. C.

Two weeks after retiring from Virginia government in 2010 for the second time, Bernie became associated with Woody Funeral Home as Director for Family and Community Relations. In 2015, he became President of Woody Funeral Home. In 2017, Nelsen Funeral Home was acquired, and he became Chief Executive Officer of all 6 Woody and Nelsen locations. At the end of 2020, Bernie was named President Emeritus, and he continued to advise management and serve as Funeral Celebrant.

Bernie's community involvement included serving as President of Richmond First, The Shepherd's Center of Richmond and Jewish Family Services of Richmond. His service on other governing boards included the Virginia Holocaust Museum, the Better Business Bureau of Central Virginia, the Capital Area Agency on Aging and the Henrico Chamber of Commerce. He also taught at the University of Richmond, the College of William & Mary, the Open University of The Shepherd's Center and the Chesterfield Lifelong Learning Institute.

Bernie was educated at Richmond Public Schools, including Thomas Jefferson High School where he was second-in-command of the Corps of Cadets. He majored in political science at Old Dominion University. He completed post-graduate programs at the University of Virginia (economics) and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at

Harvard University (program performance assessment). He also completed training for Administrative Law Judges at The National Judicial College and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and funeral management at Loewen University.

Among Bernie's awards and recognitions, he received Certificates of Recognition for Public Service from Governors Godwin, Warner and Kaine. He was named Outstanding Young Man of America by the U.S. Jaycees, Man of the Year by the Accountants Society of Virginia, he also received the Distinguished and Meritorious Service Award from the Virginia State Bar and the Lifetime Achievement Award from Marquis Who's Who Publications Board.

Visitation will be held at Woody Funeral Home, 1771 North Parham Road, Richmond, VA 23229, US, on June 20, 2026, from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

A Funeral Service will also take place on June 21, 2026, from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Grace Baptist Church, 4200 Dover Rd, Richmond, VA 23221, US.

Memorial contributions may be made to Grace Baptist Church, 4200 Dover Road, Richmond, Virginia 23221.