A longtime community leader in the City of Bunnell passed away on Friday following a series of health ailments: Revered Daisy Henry died at 77 years old, the city confirmed this week. She was among the most well-known and distinguished leaders in Bunnell.
A lifetime resident of Bunnell, Henry attended George Washington Carver High School, the segregated Black-only school that existed from 1949 to 1967. She spent much of her professional career advocating for the Carver Gym, the last remaining piece of Carver High that still hasn’t been torn down.
According to her personal resume, Henry started out as a bus driver in the Flagler County School District in June 1986. She’d hold that post until August 1989. She listed her first year on the Bunnell City Commission as 1994, a tenure which ended when she was finally voted out, narrowly, in 2013.
“The City has learned of the passing of former Commissioner Daisy Henry,” the City of Bunnell said in a statement Monday. “Commissioner Henry served with passion in her heart and a love for Bunnell. The City shares in the grief Commissioner Henry’s family and neighbors are going through at this time. We offer our condolences, thoughts and prayers to all affected by this loss. The City will be placing the American flags along East Moody Boulevard this week to honor Commissioner Henry.”
Henry’s legacy is one of public servanthood, both in local government and alongside it in those times when she wasn’t in office. The community of Bunnell, the most historic and tightly-knit among Flagler County’s three cities, mourns the loss of a friend and neighbor most everyone had met. And if they hadn’t met her, they’d certainly felt her effects.
Chris Gollon is a Flagler County resident since 2004, as well as a staple of the local independent music scene and avid observer of Central Florida politics, arts, and recreation.