Terrence Willingham

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TERRENCE WILLINGHAM, ESQ.

Terrence Willingham, 74, passed away on September 16, 2024 at Vitality Living in Arlington, Virginia. The cause of death was cancer, which he fought with all of his considerable force of will. Terrence spent more than 30 years as a civilian attorney with the Department of the Navy.  He had a breathtaking work ethic. When he retired in 2012, he had achieved the position of GS-15 Supervisor, Senior Associate Counsel in the Office of Counsel for the Naval Air Systems Command and Command Support Division. He rose through the Navy’s civilian attorney ranks, beginning in 1981 as a Senior Trial Attorney in the Navy Department’s General Counsel’s Office. Along the way, he won many prestigious awards, including two Superior Civilian Service Awards, the Navy’s second highest civilian honor. Terrence also earned the Navy’s Civilian Meritorious Performance Award, and special recognition for “Unprecedented and Herculean Service”. Prior to the Navy, Terrence served for six years as a Trial Attorney with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Washington, D.C., and worked for private law firms in Washington and Columbus, Ohio.

Terrence earned his law degree from The Ohio State University College of Law in 1974. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University Athens in 1971, completing his four-year double major in political science and sociology in just three years.

Terrence was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, graduating from John F. Kennedy High School in 1968. He was devoted to his late grandparents, Lucille and George Willingham, Sr. and often praised their belief in taking care of their own. He took his grandmother’s advice to heart and those who knew him well would say he lived it. He often quoted her as saying, “People can’t make you do what you don’t want to do. Be stronger than that”. He credited his grandparents with helping him pay for college and insisting that other family members pitch in. In addition to his grandparents, Terrence was preceded in death by his mother Vivian M. Speights, his father George Willingham, Jr., and his stepfather William Speights Sr., all of Cleveland. His loving life partner Donna Crowe of Richmond, Virginia died unexpectedly in early 2023, a few months before Terrence received his cancer diagnosis. Terrence is survived by his sister Karla Chambers, his brother William Speights, Jr. both of Cleveland, several nieces and nephews, and an army of loyal friends all over the world. Although not their biological father, Terrence loved and took parental pride in Samarra Mbenga of Whitney Point, New York, Aftyn Crowe of Bowie, Maryland, and Derek Spivey of Richmond, Virginia. Terrence considered them the‘children of his heart’. He was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and was proudest of the organization’s scholarship and mentorship program. He will be deeply missed across generations.

Terrence was unforgettably charming yet impossible to argue out of a well-researched position. When others called him stubborn, he described himself as “confident and determined”. He was generous, funny, and endlessly kind to his friends. He believed in ‘data points’ and insisted on gathering them for every major decision. He loved to travel and visited many of the world’s most beautiful places. He called Tahiti his favorite.

A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00am Saturday, September 21, 2024 at Cunningham Turch Funeral Home, 811 Cameron Street, Alexandria, Virginia. Remembrances may be offered as donations in the name of Terrence Willingham, Esq. to the National Brain Tumor Society.