Warren Gaffney Obituary

Warren Gaffney, Jr.

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA-- Mr. Warren Gaffney, Jr., died on August 14, 2012. He was born on June 13, 1931, near Thickety Mountain in Cherokee County, SC. The sixth child of the late Mr. James Warren and Mrs. Julia Marie (Mills) Gaffney, he was reared in Cowpens, SC.
Mr. Gaffney graduated from Howard University with a bachelor of science degree in pharmacy in 1958 and from the University of Iowa with a master of science degree in pharmacy in 1960.
Mr. Gaffney began his professional career as a pharmacist in 1960 at the HEW Freedman's Hospital in Washington, D.C. and in 1961 he was transferred to the Veteran Administration Center in Norfolk, VA. In 1966, he joined the pharmacy staff at the Admiral Joel T. Boone Branch Medical Clinic at the Naval Amphibious Base, Little Creek in Norfolk, VA. He served as a pharmacist for most of his professional career at Boone, except for eight years at the Naval Regional Medical Center in Portsmouth, VA. He retired in 1989 as the Pharmacy Department Head at Boone. Throughout Mr. Gaffney's long and distinguished career as a pharmacist, he was the recipient of many awards for outstanding performance. Among the awards that he received was the Navy Distinguished Service Award which is the highest honor that the Secretary of Navy can confer on a civilian employee.
As a civil servant, Mr. Gaffney served the United States Government in the Department of the Navy for 31 years. After retiring from Boone Clinic in 1989, he worked as a pharmacist at DePaul Hospital in Norfolk, VA.
Mr. Gaffney was a member of the following professional organizations: the American Society of Hospital Pharmacists, the American Pharmaceutical Association, and the Virginia Society of Hospital Pharmacists. He was recognized for his professional expertise, meticulous precision, integrity, amicability, extraordinary dedication to superior service, and an unflappable disposition. In one of the commendations he received, he was described as "a great, brilliant, kind man."
Prior to his career as a pharmacist, Mr. Gaffney enlisted in 1951 into the United States Army from which he was honorably discharged in 1953, having served in Germany and France and been awarded two medals.
Mr. Gaffney was the father of three children, Rev. Warren Gaffney III (Lisa) of Ocean Springs, MS, Mrs. Eloise Gaffney Murphy of Virginia Beach, VA, and the late Mrs. Julia Gaffney Richer of Bridgeton, MO. His former spouse was the late Mrs. Sylvia Boyd Gaffney. He had four granddaughters, Courtney and Brianna McIntyre, Esther Gaffney, Victoria Murphy; and five grandsons, Dwight Murphy, Josiah, Aaron, Gideon and Samuel Gaffney.
Mr. Gaffney is survived by his longtime companion, Mrs. Shane Rickel. Two brothers survive him, Rev. Smith Elbert Gaffney (Sandra) and Rev. Howard Benjamin Gaffney (Hattie), both of Gaffney, SC.
Mr. Gaffney was predeceased by siblings, Mr. Anthony James Gaffney, Mrs. Anita Marie Hunter, Rev. Samuel Edwin Charleman Gaffney, Mrs. Vivian Moore, Mr. Weldon David Gaffney, and Mrs. Alline Brown, as well as a newborn.
Mr. Gaffney also is survived by various nephews and nieces, including Rev. Delois Brown-Daniels and Mrs. Ethelene Palmer.
Loved as a generous father, caring grandfather, dear brother, gracious uncle, and supportive friend, Mr. Gaffney will be dearly missed by many.
The funeral will be held Saturday, August 18, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. at Island Creek Baptist Church, Cowpens, SC; visitation with the family will be from 1:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. Rev. Horace Wilson is the eulogist.
Mr. Gaffney will be buried at the Island Creek Baptist Cemetery. J.W. Woodward Funeral Home is the selected mortuary.
J.W. Woodward
Funeral Home