Gilinda Dawn Granger Rogers died on Nov. 18, after a brief but valiant battle with cancer.
She was born on April 24, 1959, the daughter of Gil and Connie Ann Granger of Williamsburg. She graduated from Lafayette High School and received a scholarship to North Carolina Wesleyan College, after which she also attended Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C.
An exuberant entrepreneur, she delighted in new challenges and improving the world around her. Her daring and drive made her many friends who cherished her positive approach to life. At Lafayette she was a leader with the newly established Junior Achievement Program. Throughout her life she was a generous volunteer of her time and talents for a variety of causes.
In 1988 she served as general manager of the Virginia Generals baseball team in the Carolina League. She joined the Jaycees in Williamsburg and later became a member of the Williamsburg Kiwanis Club and served as editor of the Kiwanagram newsletter.
Married to a Navy man, the family spent 3-1/2 years in Hawaii, where she homeschooled their two daughters and traveled extensively with them. While in Hawaii she enjoyed membership in the Honolulu Rotary Club.
She lived most of her life in Williamsburg, where she grew up and cared deeply about the community. Seeing the need for true local news coverage, she developed "The Local Channel," a TV program of local news and other events that aired on cable specifically in and about the Williamsburg area. She also managed two radio stations, WMBG-AM740 and WPTG-FM 107.9, and created and managed several businesses over the years. She grasped early on the potential of the Internet and became a pioneer web developer and domain broker, a business she continued until her death.
She and her family have enjoyed being a host family for exchange students, an outreach that has included nine students from six countries.
She is survived by her husband, Corby Steven Rogers; her daughters, Gwenhwyfar and Evangeline; and her exchange daughter,
Victoria Pavlova; as well has her parents, Gil and Connie Granger; her sister, GrayAnn Ewell and her husband, Steve; her broth-er, Gregory Granger and his wife, Lisa; and nieces and nephews, Jill and James Ewell and Gabrielle, Graham and Grace Granger, all of Williamsburg.
Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Monday, Nov. 21, at Williamsburg Baptist Church, 227 Richmond Rd. Interment will be private. Donations may be made in her honor to the Gilinda Rogers Adventure Scholarship Fund c/o Chesapeake Bank, 1229 Lafayette St., Williamsburg VA 23185.
Condolences may be registered at
[contact link] and cards to 302 Harrison Ave., Williamsburg VA 23185. Arrangements are by Bristow-Faulkner Funeral Home in Saluda.
The Virginia Gazette (Williamsburg, Virginia) Saturday, November 19, 2005
Lizzie Kunde 
