William Jonathan North, Sr

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day." -2 Timothy 4: 7-8

William Johnathan "Johnny" North, Sr or as everyone who knew and loved him referred to him "Big John", fought the good fight, finished the race and won the crown of righteousness on March 22nd after many years of illness.

Johnny was born on December 26th 1946 to James Thomas North, Sr and Lillian Kathleen North. He is preceded in death by his parents, his brother James T. "Jim" North, Jr, his loving wife Sue North and a son James Austin "Jamie" North.

Left to cherish his memory are his son William Jonathan "Jon Jon" North, Jr and wife Michelle; his 3 grandchildren, who were his pride and joy, Lillian Kathleen "Lilly" North, Spencer Thomas North, and Ruby Adele North; his canine companion Scooter; along with his sisters-in-law Peggy North, Jane (Alvis) Hennings, Annette (Joe) Hennings, and Clara Hinshaw; a brother-in-law Kenny (Betsy) Brown; and several nieces, nephews, and special cousins Steve Taylor and Lydia Goodrum.

Big John was a member of Enon Baptist Church where he enjoyed helping deliver food to shut ins in the community. He was also a faithful attendee of Union Cross Friends where he helped with maintenance around the church, grilling and playing 1st base on the church softball team. Big John retired after 30 plus years of service from RJ Reynolds where he was a mechanic. He was a member of the Yadkin County Rescue Squad where he served some of his time as Captain. He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge #162.

Big John live life and loved big. He was a friend to all. He loved all things motorcycles, especially Harley Davidson's, and enjoyed taking a ride any day of the week with his "Suzie Q" "Jon Jon" and his best friend Stan. He looked forward to going to Daytona Beach Bike Week with his friends each year that he was able to make the ride down on his bike. He also enjoyed woodworking, gardening, landscaping and cooking with Sue in the kitchen. All who knew him loved his cooking. He enjoyed traveling with Sue when she and her singing groups would perform, to help set up and take down equipment for them. He also found his love for theatre by going to watch his "Lilly Katie" in shows at the Willingham Theatre in Yadkinville and attending her dance recitals. He was so proud of his "SpenceO" for getting his Eagle Scout, going onto continue his education at Western Carolina and marching in the band at both Forbush and Western Carolina. "Ruby Q" was his little sweetheart. He so enjoyed all the hugs, kisses, and pictures that Ruby drew for him and attending Ruby's dance recital. He was always proud to display her artwork either at home or in the hospital. If you talked to Big John long enough, you heard all about his grandkids and how proud he was of them.

A special thank you to his amazing home care team who are now family: Joan, Angela, Beverly, Dawn, and Sam. We so appreciate all you did for us to help keep Big John at home and for the love and care you gave to him.

A celebration of life service will be held on Sunday, March 26th at Union Cross Friends. The visitation will be from 2 pm to 3pm with the funeral service and burial to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to the ALS Association (donate.als.org).

Huff Funeral Home is respectfully serving the North Family.

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