Minerva Andrews

Minerva Andrews

Minerva Wilson Andrews Minerva Wilson Andrews, 86, of Charlottesville, Virginia, formerly of McLean, Virginia passed away on September 4, 2011 in the health care facilities of Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge. Minerva was born in Rock Hill, South Carolina on February 1, 1925 to York Lowry and Minnie de Foix (Long) Wilson. In 1945 she received her A.B. from the University of South Carolina. She then continued on to the University of Virginia Law School where she was one of the first female graduates to receive her LLB in 1948. In 1950, Minerva married Robert Taylor Andrews (deceased) of Williamsport, PA and they lived together in McLean, VA for 54 years before relocating to Westminster-Canterbury in Charlottesville, VA in December of 2003. Minerva began her legal career as a trial attorney in the antitrust division of the US Department of Justice in Washington DC. She then became an associate attorney with Bauknight, Prichard, McCandlish & Williams (1963-72) which became Boothe, Prichard & Dudley in 1972 she was elected partner in 1980. Her firm then merged with McGuire, Woods, Battle and Boothe and she served in the McLean office from 1980 until her retirement in 1992. During her career she served on various real estate committees for the Virginia Bar Association (past chair), Fairfax Bar Association (past chair) and for the Virginia State Bar (past chair). In 2001 she was awarded the William B. Spong, Jr. Professionalism award. She was active in many organizations through out her life serving as National President of the National Society of Arts and Letters (1994-96) Board of Directors of the McLean Citizens Association (1968-2000) Fairfax/Falls Church United Way (1988-2001) Life Elder, Lewinsville Presbyterian Church (1980-2003) and Elder at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville. In 1997 she was named Citizen of the Year by the Washington Post and the Fairfax County Federation of Citizens Associations. She spent her retirement working on her book Carolina-Virginia Recollections, 1999, and A Carolina-Virginia Genealogy, vol. 2, 2000 (an update of her father’s vol. 1) while enjoying the activities at Westminster-Canterbury. Minerva is survived by two children: Susan Andrews Wiles of Haymarket, Virginia, her husband Robert Wiles and son John Robert (Jack) Wiles and Stuart Davidson Andrews of Largo, Florida and his companion Robin Dalzell. She also is survived by numerous nieces and nephews from around the globe of whom she was very fond. Services will be held at 3 pm on Saturday, September 10th at Rose Hill Cemetery in York, South Carolina. The family is asking that donations be made to The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America or Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge Foundation: Employee Education Fund. Bratton Funeral Home in York is serving the Andrews family.