Vernon Winfrey was born in 1933 and served on the Metro Nashville Council for 16 years. He was also a well-known barber in his community, having run a barbershop in East Nashville for over 50 years. Vernita Lee, Oprah Winfrey s mother, died in 2018 at the age of 83. Lee Winfrey and Vernon Winfrey never married. Vernon Winfrey, Oprah Winfrey’s Father, Dies at the Age of 89.