Geraldine Madgie Boone Banks was called home to glory Saturday night, October 14, 2006 at 11:30 p.m.

Geraldine was one of twelve children born to the late Octavious Randolph and Madgie Mary Boone, born on January 10, 1924.

Geraldine moved with her first husband, and father of her eldest child, Rhodessa Dancy McKinney, to Indianapolis, Indiana, when she was 16 years old. Mr. Dancy was subsequently killed in WWII. She later married Curlie James Bledsoe, in Indianapolis, where she gave birth to Curlie James, Jr. (who died in 1989) and Denise Bledsoe. Her last husband, Robert Lee Banks, Sr., was the father of her last two children, Diane and Robert Lee, Jr., both of whom were born in Neptune, New Jersey.

Geraldine was a wonderful mother, daughter, sister, and wife, as well as a treasured aunt and friend to many, many more relatives and neighbors. She was gifted with both physical and spiritual beauty, and possessed a tremendously loving and generous nature. She was a skilled cook and seamstress, and held several jobs over the course of her life, including factory work and nursing. She loved her family, foremost, and the Lord. She loved to travel and roamed thousands of miles over land and sea with kin and friends. (She will also be remembered for her hobbies of "playing the numbers" and slot machines, and watching her soap stories.) Geraldine doted on her grandson and the many nieces, nephews, and grandchildren of her siblings. She had a joyous sense of humor and a giving heart.

A resident of Washington, D.C. for over 40 years, Geraldine moved to a senior citizen residence in Takoma Park, Maryland, in 2001, where she lived out her final years enjoying visits and reunions with her extended family, and getting to know her new neighbors. She will be greatly missed by us all.

Geraldine leaves to cherish her memory: her children, Rhodessa McKinney, Denise Bledsoe Slaughter, Diane Banks, and Robert L. Banks, Jr.; her only grandchild, James Spencer Slaughter; her sisters Adell Boone Wilson and Cather Mae Boone Lewis, and brothers Herbert Roland Boone, James Clinton (and wife Margaret) Boone, and Joe Louis (and wife Barbara) Boone; and son-in-law Kenneth Spencer Slaughter. In addition, she will be dearly remembered by a host of nieces, nephews, and in-laws, as well as her many friends and anyone who knew her, spread across the country.