She may have retired in 2014 from her professional banking job, but Della Garrett, a Gloucester native, is certainly a non-retired lady. She is president of the Virginia Branch of The King’s Daughters and Sons and secretary for the York River Circle of The King’s Daughters and Sons, a member of the Providence Baptist Church cooking team, and newly elected registrar of the Augustine Warner Chapter of the DAR (mentioning a few). Her passion for genealogy is endless and her delicious cake-making has gained fame.
Della and her husband Jimmy, married 55 years ago, live in the home Della’s parents bought in 1953. “Except for a few years, it’s been my home all my life.” Here they reared their three children: Jay, April and Donna. Today they have four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. “And they all live within 30 miles of us.”
Della says, “Learning to cook was made up of wonderful time spent with my mother, grandmothers and aunts. One of my favorite memories was helping my grandmoth...