Ann Knight

Born in 1932 to John Eugene (“Jack”) and Jewel Williams (nee Richardson) in San Antonio, Texas, Ann was the first of two children. Her younger brother, Michael, died from leukemia around age 10. Jewel and Jack separated when Ann was about 14, and her mother, Jewel, raised her. As Jewel worked various jobs to support the family, which included running a restaurant, Ann often stayed with her aunts, uncles, and cousins. Moving from home to home, she quickly learned how to relate to different kinds of people and make friends. These early lessons stayed with Ann throughout her life.

Ann had a natural ability to put people at ease. Almost everyone who knew Ann spoke of her warmth and how she made them feel welcome. She was funny, smart and had a keen insight into people. She was exceptionally empathetic, a good listener and was nominated for the most popular girl in her high school. After graduating high school and attending business school, Ann worked at the phone company. Eventually, she met her husband, John Philip (“Phil”) Knight, in San Antonio, where Phil served in the Army Counterintelligence Corps. On November 23, 1954, they married and moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where Phil accepted a job with the YMCA. Beginning their family in Wisconsin, Ann gave birth to their three children: Karen, Patrick, and Paul who, with Phil, were the loves of her life.

In 1966, the family moved to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma for Phil’s YMCA work. Ann invested her life in raising her children there. She and Phil attended the Methodist church. In 1979, Ann, Phil and Paul moved to Coral Springs, Florida, where Phil eventually became the CEO of the Broward County YMCA. Phil and Ann joined the First Presbyterian Church of Coral Springs, where Phil became an elder and deacon, and Ann served in the children’s ministry as a teacher. After arriving in Florida, Ann suffered greatly from leaving Karen and Pat back in Oklahoma and from the move. She experienced a crisis of faith. In 1979, on her hands and knees in the church sanctuary, praying in a way she never had before, she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. This began Ann’s new life, and she became very active in the church.

After 58 years of marriage, Phil passed away in 2013. On March 10, 2026, Ann went to be with the Lord with her two sons, Pat and Paul, by her side. Many loving family members and friends visited her in the days before. Everywhere Ann lived or worked, she was much beloved. She embodied the scripture: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). All her life, Ann put the interests of others above her own. Ann is survived by her children, Karen, Patrick (wife Julie), Paul (wife Lisa), and by her grandchildren, Tom, Michael, Emma, and Nathanael, and her great grandson, Joshua.