Safe in His Arms…

"Because the Lord is my Shepherd, I have everything I need."

Ida Delois Richardson Bailey was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on March 23, 1938. She was the third of eleven children born to the late Alexander and Mary Terry Richardson.

Delois, as she was affectionately called, was educated in the public schools of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County and graduated from Atkins High School. Following high school graduation, she enrolled at Winston-Salem Teachers College and earned a BS degree in Elementary Education. She began her teaching experience in Wilson, North Carolina where she taught 6 ^th grade.

Her early Christian education began at Mount Zion Baptist Church. She joined at nine years old and was baptized under the pastorate of the late Reverend Dr. Kelly O. P. Goodwin.

Ida Delois Richardson married her high school sweetheart, Ray Bahnson Bailey, in 1961. Their union was blessed with five children and the couple celebrated 53 years of marriage prior to Ray's death in 2014.

Delois continued her education and earned a master's degree in Elementary Education from Hofstra University. She lived and taught school in Amityville, New York for 34 years prior to her retirement. And while living in Amityville, she was a faithful member of Holy Trinity Baptist Church where she was a dedicated deaconess, trustee and choir member.

The family moved back to Winston-Salem in 1999 and Delois reunited with the church of her youth. She exercised the tenets of her faith as a member of the Deaconess Board and the Sarah Missionary Group. She was a member of the Phi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., the Kernersville Chapter of  National Women of Achievement, Just Us Neighbors (JUNS) Community Club and the Book Club of Today.

Ida Delois Richardson Bailey passed away at Trellis Supportive Care in Winston-Salem on Sunday, March 14, 2021, following a period of illness. In addition to her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by her son, Kenneth; her daughter, Teresa; great granddaughter, Sania Love; and seven siblings.

Those family members who survive and who will forever cherish loving memories of her include her son, Brian Bailey; two daughters, Tiffany Davis and Sabrina Bailey; grandchildren, Portia Bailey and Corey Bailey-Huffaker; her sister, Modine R. Shaw; two brothers, Willie (Belinda) Richardson and Alexander (Vera) Richardson; sister-in-law, Carolyn White; several extended family members and many friends.

The family requests: In lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Ezra Fund of Mount Zion Baptist Church.

A funeral service will be held at Mount Zion Baptist Church at 12 Noon, Friday, March 19, 2021. Family visitation at 11:30 am at the church.

Funeral Service will be streamed live at 12 pm, Friday, March 19, 2020 http://video.ibm.com/channel/mount-zion-the-joy