With heavy hearts and deep love, we celebrate the life of Mrs. Biafra Roney Sidney who entered eternal rest on Thursday, July 3, 2025, after a year-long stay at Battlefield Park Healthcare Center. She was born on July 18, 1970, in Petersburg, Virginia to mother, Alice Marie Roney and lovingly nurtured and raised by her father, the late Thomas Leon "Dickie" Redwine and Marie Carol Jones. Dickie, an African American activist, named his daughter Biafra.

Biafra was a happy baby, the apple of her father's eye. She was afforded a wonderful childhood by a village of people who loved her. Her nickname was "Goodie Two Shoes", (sometimes shortened to Goodie because you only had to tell her 'not to touch' once.)

From daycare to St. Stephen's Church, she learned early about the Episcopal Church by accompanying and watching her grandmother Marie R. Jones as she prepared the altar for Sunday services. She enjoyed trips to King's Dominion and other places her dad would just pick up and take her to on a whim, to learning modern and praise dancing at church, to reciting poems and other narratives, to participating in Vacation Bible School (at which she later taught), to being a Girl Scout and always loving teaching and working with children. She was always lining her dolls up to play "school', early on. She loved to write poems and would sometimes have them published in The Progress Index.

Biafra was known for her wit and sense of humor. She could always keep you laughing and make up a pet name for you on a moment's notice. As a modern griot, she had an incredible ability to recall and recite the family connections and the stories of community's people of all ages. She was a social media aficionado and had a large following. She also was a person who didn't have a problem letting you know exactly what was on her mind. She had a very caring spirit and looked out for her roommates while at Battlefield Park.

Biafra graduated from Petersburg High School, Class of 1988. She participated in the Upward Bound Project at Virginia State University which helped her decide to attend St. Paul's College in Lawrenceville, Virginia.

Biafra worked at the Petersburg Public Library under the direction of Mr. Wayne Crocker, Librarian. She worked in the Petersburg Public School System first as a substitute teacher, then a long-term substitute at what was then, A.P. Hill School. Her last position was as an aide with the Special Education Department at Petersburg High School.

She was preceded in death by her father; grandparents, Thomas and Julia Redwine, Mable Roney Graves, Carlyle and Marie Jones; brother, Leonard Weaver; aunts, Dorothy R. Rouse, Annie R. Hill and Lula R. Goudeau; and uncle, Robert "Bobby" Redwine.

Left to treasure her memory are her children whom she deeply loved and doted on, Khalila Marie Roney and Thomas Ross Emmauel Sidney; mother, Alice Marie Roney; sister, Zambia N. Taylor; brother, Lamont Graves; aunts, Shirline R. Burrows, Gloria R. Moss, Linda Redwine Bell (Robert), Wanda R. Taylor (Mark), C. Lorraine Jones, C. Robin Jones and Amanda R. Briggs; former husband, George L. Sidney; Marie Carol Jones; and a host of other aunts, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends, too numerous to name.

A Memorial and Celebration of Life Service will be held 12 Noon, Friday, July 18, 2025, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 228 Halifax Street, Petersburg, VA.

A Christian wake will be held from 6:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M., Thursday, July 17, 2025, at the funeral establishment.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in memory of Biafra Roney Sidney.

J.M. Wilkerson Funeral Establishment, Inc., 102 South Avenue, Petersburg, VA, (804) 732-8911, watch the funeral services live online at www.jmwilkersonsince1874.com.