A great turnout is expected for the funeral of a pioneering member of Birmingham’s black business community.

Jolly Bailey, 77, proprietor of Jolly’s Card Shop, passed away recently after a short illness with his family present.

He will be laid to rest at a Handsworth church on Thursday February 6.

Along with his wife Flo, now 76, the Baileys ran the aforementioned store in Soho Road, Birmingham for over 25 years, all but three of them from its famous Handsworth base before it was closed down by the couple just over six years ago to enable them to enjoy a quieter life.

Jolly’s Card Shop was a landmark among local businesses during times when the number of black-owned businesses in prime sites were on the decline.

In the days when obtaining cards uniquely crafted especially for the African and Caribbean communities were hard to come by, customers were known to travel from across the country to visit the store and buy from Jolly’s prized stock of African fine art, posters, and literature penned by emerging writers such as Jasmine Johnson and David Simon.

Jolly’s philanthropic nature was evident in the great volume of community work he undertook, which included taking governorship of several local primary and secondary schools, chairing popular community centres and supporting black schoolboys to avoid school exclusion as a volunteer on the Handsworth Wood/ Lozells-based KWESI Mentoring Project.

Jolly, a former GEC Engineer, hailed from The Papine, St Andrew, Jamaica came to the UK as a teenager.

At the time of his retirement he told The Voice: “Serving the community has been our greatest joy, and we have had some truly wonderful customers over the years. We appreciate the loyalty they have shown us and we shall miss them.”

Sonia, one of Bailey’s five children (four daughters and one son) released a statement to convey her feelings on the passing of a parent that meant so much to the community.

She said: “I feel so proud that he was my father. He was thought of so highly by so many communities. This was not surprising as he was a thoughtful, wise and generous spirit who celebrated people’s successes. He had the gift of nurturing friendships and family connections.”

Jolly Bailey’s funeral will take place on Thursday 6^th February at the New Testament Church of God in Handsworth, Birmingham from 11am. Details for the reception will be carried within the funeral programme which will be made available on the day.