Joel Landon Harrison

Joel Landon Harrison passed away January 7, 2020. He was born in Dalton, Georgia January 21, 1972 and was adopted by Dr. Billy J. Harrison and his wife Velda Daugherty Harrison. When he was two and a half days old, he was delivered to the doctor's house where his new mother and his new 6-year-old brother, Tim, were waiting to pick him up.

Joel's favorite bedtime story was "Tell me how you got me." He was a strong-willed child. He was not even intimidated by adults. Being strong-willed, he used humor to persuade his parents, especially his dad, to give in to him. He later became a very persuasive top salesman in his career.

Joel had many friends, in fact, he had a nickname for each one. He loved to laugh, and he loved to make other people laugh. He had the rare ability to make people laugh without ever telling a joke. When asked, he replied, "There's no need to tell a joke. Life is too funny!"

Joel's personality, when tested for employment, was that of a Merchant Innovator, meaning he was a salesman but sold for the betterment of the purchaser as well as for profit for the company he represented. This type of person, just by walking into a room, draws people's attention. This was Joel. He was honest, straight shooting and trustworthy. They were drawn to him.

Joel was a man of compassion. When someone came to him with a problem, he wanted to fix it for them. He would say, "Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it." Then, he gave his all to "fix it". When Michael, a child next door, was accidentally killed, Joel vowed to wear a rubber wrist band with Michael's name on it until he died. He kept his promise.

Joel was good at any sport that in which he participated; baseball, golfing, fishing and hunting. He broke Varsity and Jr. Varsity pitching records. He has two plaques on the wall of Chickasaw Country Club, Memphis, for two holes -in-one. He always caught fish when no one else was catching fish, even when they fished in the same spot, used the same lure and held their mouth like his.

He was a great conversationalist. He could talk intelligently about any subject that was brought up and people respected his opinion and sought his advice. However, he was a private person and kept things to himself. When he was not ready to share, he had a great salesman art of diverting the subject back to the other person. When he needed rest from helping others and problem solving, he required his own space.

Joel graduated from Central Gwinnett High School, Lawrenceville, GA, and moved immediately to Memphis, TN, to find a job to prove he did not need to go to college. He worked for Southern Leather Shoe Company, Memphis, for 22 years as Regional Sales Representative. He was voted top salesman many times.

Besides his parents and his brother Tim (Michelle) and his nephews, Joel leaves behind his children, son, Dalton and daughter, Camryn. Joel loved following the children’s sports activities. He introduced Dalton to fishing, hunting, golfing and baseball. He loved teasing Cami because he loved making her laugh and seeing her smile light up.

Joel became a Christian when he was 16 and joined a church in Indianapolis. He had his own way of bringing people to know Christ and was still ministering to them in his own way. His last words were "Jesus, Jesus." He is at peace with God. He did his best.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorials be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105, or www.stjude.org