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Life story

" Doris, also known as “Nanny” and “Great Nanny,” went to be with Jesus peacefully in her sleep on July 8th, 2023.

Doris excelled in every area of her life. She was an amazing and loving wife, mom, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, and friend. She loved Jesus with her whole heart and had since she was a little girl. So we celebrate that she is finally in His arms.

Her mother, Ruth Henderson, went to be with Jesus when Doris was only 10 years old. It was then that her grandmother, Blanche Wheatley, dedicated acreage to the Heflin family to begin a church camp as a memorial to Ruth. The camp, Calvary Pentecostal Tabernacle, in Ashland, VA is still thriving and serving the Lord today. This, as well as on the radio, is where Doris grew up singing and playing the piano and accordion for the Lord.

Doris married young to a man named Berkeley Gammon and had three children, Brian, Jeff, and Cheryl… who loved her deeply as a mom and a best friend. This marriage ended in the mid1960’s. She was an independent spirit and worked several different jobs over those years to make ends meet and raise her kids. The four of them were a tight-knit family and remained that way throughout their lives.

She eventually found her passion in an accounting career working for Safeway Stores in Landover, MD. She worked there for 20 years before retiring. She also had a passion for adventure which she had many that she loved to tell stories about. A couple of her favorites were racing against “Cha-Cha” Muldowney and the times she spent in Nashville gathering stories while working for a music magazine. She also loved to tell the story of how she met a man named John Cerullo, the man who stood faithfully by her side for the remainder of her life. He won her heart by telling her he was a fireman who had just saved a puppy. That story earned him a cup of coffee with her and that began a whole new adventure. The two of them would go on to get married in Lusby, MD, raise her step children, Jennifer and Stacy, and have 3 furry four-legged children of their own... Holly, Snickers, and Ginger.

They lived in a house on a cliff overlooking the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland for many years. There, they started a blues band, in which John played the guitar and she was the band’s manager.
As the cliffs started to become an unsafe place to live they moved to Berkeley Springs, WV. There she enjoyed taking long drives through the country with her sweetheart looking for new places to eat… especially those serving fried chicken and ice cream. After living there for years, in 2019 they decided to move to Fredericksburg, VA to be closer to family. We are so thankful they chose to do this as it enabled us to spend quality time with her before she left.

She always had a way of making everyone feel loved and cared for and understood. She loved people and people loved her. The sparkle in her eyes, the warmth of her smile, and her understanding ways will be sorely missed.

Doris was preceded in death by her parents, Willard and Ruth Henderson, her brother Willard Henderson Jr., and her son, Jeffery Gammon.

Surviving family members are her husband, John Cerullo; Children: Brian Gammon and Cheryl Kegley (Husband Karl) Siblings: David Henderson, (wife Gail) Edith Dowd, Helen Jefferson; Grandchildren: John Gammon, (wife, Kim, son, Kaden), Trevor Gammon, (children, Christian and Jameson, life partner, Kelsey Higgins, her children, Shawn and Jaxson) Jessica Gammon (son Landon, her fiance, Chris Pregent, their children, Ryleigh and Parker) Shannon Gammon, Sarah Gammon (children, Nicholas and Alex) Jerremy Gammon (wife, Lauren, children, Jerremy II and Jackson) Rob Coons (finace, Zoya Ali) Bret; Step children: Jennifer Gathman (husband, Greg, children, Aiden, Patrick, and Evan), Stacy Cerullo (children, Caitlyn (daughters Amira and Aspen), and Daniel.)

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