Paulette Armstrong

Paulette Michelle Armstrong

Dawn – April 2, 1960 Dusk – November 30, 2022

Paulette was a beautiful spirit who believed in love as the activating force of her life. She
loved her family and friends and showed compassion while encompassing God’s love with
her whole being.
And so, we can rest assured that Paulette’s time with all of us was filled with an abundance of beautiful memories, love and unforgettable moments. Paulette was an open soul, and
both welcomed and showed love to many. She was easy to talk to and a great listener.

The oldest of five siblings, her parents instilled in her Christian values and the importance of
education. Paulette valued her comedic and loving conversations with her Mother.
Paulette and her Mother utilized and cherished every moment together whether shopping
together , or sneaking away to dine at businesses with all the taboo foods for their diet.
They traveled all over the area, and on the Eastern Shore. As Carolyn grew older, Paulette
proved her role as a true protector, friend and confidant for her Mother. Their bond was
truly special and full of unconditional love. She spent a lot of time at the family’s home, and
absolutely enjoyed helping her father learn how to navigate the computer, conversations
about life, family and exchanging wisdom. She was truly blessed with her parents and their
vital roles in her life.

She enjoyed long walks, trips to the beach, and many experiences with her younger sister, Darleen. She shared so many joys and and even challenges of motherhood with her sister DeAnna (Dee), making sure their boys spent time together and that they became aware of
how much the world has to offer. She enjoyed her younger brothers Darnell and Daryl and
played the big sister role to its fullest extent. She understood the importance of self love
and made the things priority that created enjoyment and bliss in her life …wearing her
favorite colors, seeing new places and creating a happy atmosphere around friends and
family, and loved her signature red nail polish. Her self-care also meant countless hours in
Dee’s salon experimenting with hairstyles.

Paulette always had an adventurous spirit and often reminisced about her various trips to
the Caribbean and Paris and the many places with the memories of the beauty of the Eiffel
Tower and the romantic atmosphere as these became embedded in her spirit. Paris gave
Paulette a chance to use her French, a language she studied in school and loved. She was
absolutely cultured from her travels and enjoyed various cuisines from all over the globe,
Paulette had a cultured palette when it came to food. She enjoyed Mediterranean,
Vietnamese, BBQ, Indian cuisine, Caribbean, African cuisine and seafood, especially
Maryland blue crabs.

Paulette’s love of travel continued on a more personal note with her frequent visits to
Oklahoma where she spent time with her son David and her first and only grandson Amir,
who affectionately called her “GG”. Paulette loved her visits with David’s family. She was
proud of how intelligent Amir was and enjoyed joining in to teach Amir to read, spell, write
and count. She also enjoyed watching and teaching problem solving tasks to Amir. Reading
was dear to her heart because she started reading at the age of three and a half and never
stopped. She was a speed reader, a skill she learned in high school. She read Roots, by Alex
Haley in just three days. She was an avid reader of all kinds of literary works. She also
enjoyed watching old movies.

Paulette’s time with David and Amir meant a lot to her. Paulette valued education and
worked hard to make sure David was educated. David graduated with honors from Fork
Union Military Academy and attended The University of Maryland Eastern Shore and
Montgomery College. They were inseparable, she even put her fears of sleeping outdoors
aside to be on camping trips with David during his time in cub scouts. Growing up, all of
David’s childhood friends loved Paula and would continue that love throughout her life.
Whether it be stopping to check on her while David was away or just calling to see if she
needed anything. Their families became Paulette’s family also. Later in life , David would
take his mom along on family vacations, and “just Go” getaways as David and Paulette called
them. “You're my whole heart” is what David told Paulette frequently. Her focus on learning
the world also continued with Amir, as she would spend time helping him to learn to cook
and plant seeds, which connected to her own flower and vegetable garden at her home in
MD. Paulette and Amir had a lot of fun exploring Oklahoma – visiting museums, aquariums,
restaurants, and a number of children workshops and events. They spent time together at
church and Paulette taught him to pray and sing hymns. Amir loved Paulette with all of his little
heart. Even as a 4 year old, he would take Paulette on picnic dates and cook with David for
GG’s breakfast. David’s family Sarah, Amirah, Alayah, Amir and Tre adored Paulette as she
loved them all dearly. She will be missed by them all Greatly. The many friends she made in
Oklahoma have all expressed their sentiments and prayers. The Oklahoma crew loved Paula.

Paulette’s spiritual life began in Cambridge, Dorchester County, MD where she was born.
She was baptized at Bethel AME Church where she was a member of both Sunday school
and the Youth Choir. Upon moving to Silver Spring in 1972, she joined St. John the Baptist
Catholic Church with her family, and then later joined Reid Temple AME Church in Lanham,
Md. Paulette was a strong advocate and proponent of the James A. Parker Lay Organization.
She worked tirelessly as a layman to fulfill the mission of the laity in the church. She was a
dedicated servant leader in the following positions, correspondence secretary, recording
secretary, 1st Vice President and lastly as President. President Armstrong led with purposeful
impact. An Instructor for the Reid Temple New Member Orientation classes, she had deep
reverence for the AME church history and Discipline. She was committed to raise awareness
for social justice and delighted to participate in the many social action activities as part of
the JAPLO. Paulette supported and diligently attended meetings and conferences to
support the Washington Conference Lay Organization, the Second Episcopal Lay
Organization, Connectional Lay Organization (Biennial) and the AME General Conference to
fulfill her duties as a lay person working in the vineyard. She often would say that she “grew
up” in the lay, and she was correct, as she has served in the laity for 30 years.

Paulette was a member of Reid Temple’s Scholarship Committee, and Assistant Director of
the Winifred F. Cameron Christian Debutantes and Masters Dedication Commission
Ministry. Paulette gave freely of her time and talent to the Kingdom of God.

Paulette made a tremendous contribution in her professional life as well. She retired from
Fairfax County Government in Fairfax, Virginia after 30 years of service where she was a
Training Officer Specialist in Emotional Management for the Department of Organizational
Development and Training. She conducted a number of trainings and was certified in Myers
Briggs and Emotional Intelligence. She played a key role in many team building projects in
the county, and was highly sought after, and often requested to assist with team building at
the agency level. She also worked in the Fairfax County Executive’s office as a Management
Analyst. In addition to her work in finance, she worked in community services, while
introducing computer lab capabilities to low income area residents in northern Virginia and
also supported several agencies. Her love was training. She was focused when tasked with
leadership and technical responsibilities. Paulette received a number of work related
recognitions, including the Outstanding Performance Award while working for the
Organizational Training Division (OD&T), December, 2018. Paulette was highly respected
and loved by her co-workers, and as one former co-worker expressed, “not everyone has
that skill set.” Her co-workers remember her sense of style, caring heart, and words of
wisdom. Paulette enjoyed her career and built many friendships at the office.

Paulette graduated from Springbrook High School in Silver Spring, Maryland in 1978, and
was a “Who’s Who” among the entire country, each and every American High School, Top
100 academically. Paulette remained on the honor roll throughout her school career. She
graduated from the University of Maryland College Park, in 1982 with a B.A. in English. She
also graduated from Nyack College Alliance University with honors in Organizational
Management achieving her masters degree.

Paulette spent some time living in Harlem, New York, and Virginia, before making her way
back closer to family. She was an excellent big sister and made it a point to inspire and
motivate her family, friends and co-workers.

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” – Proverbs
19:11…Paulette’s favorite scripture.

Andre Smith is Paulette’s brother-in-law, her sister Darleen’s husband, but he might as well
be her blood brother. She loved Andre for always being there for her and playing a huge role
in her son David’s life since youth. Darleen and Andre’s sons (Isaiah, Andre Jr) were always
considered brothers to David.

Paulette was named after her Great-Grandmother Pauline, who she affectionately called Nanny (a name adopted by the rest of the family), and she was her Grandmother Satoria’s first and beloved granddaughter. While growing up, she spent a lot of time at her grandmother’s home playing with her Uncle Johnny who was more like a big brother than an uncle. They had a special bond, and Paulette naturally gravitated to him. Paula loved when her Uncle Johnny called her “niecee pooh”. Paulette and Uncle Johnny often credited Great-Grandmother Pauline with their love of cooking. She also embodied the essence of her Great-Grandmother with her contagious laughter, gentle, quiet spirit, kind soul and gardening. Paulette is the mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend whose
spirit of love fills every corner of this room today, and will forever fill our hearts. We love
you Paulette…forever and always!

Paulette transitioned life in Oklahoma, a few days after Thanksgiving while visiting David and
Amir.

It is the Lord’s Purpose in Paulette’s life that will continue to embrace and sustain her
family...Paulette is survived by David Nichols, (Son), Amir Nichols, (Grandson), Carolyn
Armstrong, (Mother), William F. Armstrong, (Father), Sisters, DeAnna Braithwaite (Bernard)
and Darleen Smith(Andre), Brothers, Darnell Armstrong (Tina) and Daryl J. Armstrong
(deceased), nephews – Colin, Christian, Cordell, DeRay, Kenneth, Victor, Andre Jr., and
Isaiah, a niece Deja, Uncles John Collins, Larry, Wayne, Gary, Gregory, and Ronald Meekins,
Vertice Wright, Aunts Frances Collins, Mary Wright, Phyllis Calhoun, Gail Matthews, and
Faye Perry, Great Nieces and Nephews and a host of Cousins, relatives and friends.

Paulette on this this Day December 19th 2022
❤ WE CELEBRATE YOU ❤