Pollie H. Goff

Pollie Ann Harris Goff went home to be with the Lord at the age of 69. She struggled with an auto-immune disease that affected her eyes and caused her to have a severe loss of vision in her latter years. However, to talk to her you would never have known the severity of her condition. Pollie lived a life that coincided with the command to walk by faith. She allowed God to direct everything she did and she rested in His comfort in dealing with her eye issue. She maintained her joy while living with a condition that would have drained the joy from most people.

Pollie or as her mother called her, Pollie Ann, was always a focused and driven young lady. She excelled in school, loved reading and going to church at Vermont Avenue Baptist church. She sang in the church choir and was even crowned Miss Vermont Avenue when she was 15. She graduated from McKinley High School in 1967 in Washington D.C. Pollie proceeded to attend Rutger’s University and graduated in 1971. She wasn’t done yet. She matriculated to George Washington Law School after receiving a full scholarship and Pollie received her J.D. (Juris doctorate) in 1974. She began her legal career by serving in the D.C. Public School system. She spent a brief period of time in the private sector but for a number of reasons she felt the best fit for her and her family was to serve and work for the D.C. Government. She became an attorney in the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) for the D.C. Government until she retired last year.

Pollie was a woman that loved her family, especially her two sons. They were her pride and joy – most of the time. After marrying the love of her life, Samuel Rayford McElroy (Ray) the four of them settled down in Rockville, Maryland after a brief stint in Tulsa, Oklahoma. There, she devoted her life to raising Alex and Sam, even deciding to put her career on hold for five years in order to devote that time to her sons. She was their source of love, guidance, and opportunity. The results of these gifts continue to live on in Alex and Sam even though she has passed.

Pollie was preceded in death by her father Robert Harris and her husband Samuel Rayford McElroy. She is survived by her mother, Corneather Harris of Washington D.C. She is survived by her son Samuel McElroy, his wife Patricia, and their boys, Nathan, and Samuel. She is also survived by her son Alex McElroy, his wife Kasie, and their daughters, Michaela and Grace.

We know that everyone makes mistakes and falls short of God’s standard of perfection but it’s hard to remember a time where Pollie hurt or harmed anyone. No one remembers hearing her utter a curse word or even a terse word. Pollie exhibited the highest level of character at all times. When we finish our lives, what better statement could be made about us? The life that Pollie lived has shown us the importance of integrity, honesty, and obedience.

Pollie will be greatly missed but never forgotten. She impacted those she worked with, those she raised, those in her family, and anyone with whom she interacted. She was courageous in the face of adversity, steadfast in the midst of pain, and loving through it all. At the end of our lives we can no longer speak for ourselves and we must trust others to tell our story. However, how we live is what writes that story for others to tell. Pollie’s story was well-written and faithfully lived. She gave God all of the glory and would encourage us to do the same.