Mr. Harry W. Watkins Jr.

December 12, 1934 – April 21, 2021

Harry Wilfred Watkins Jr died Wednesday evening, April 21st. Services will be held at 11am, on Thursday May 6th at Shades Valley Presbyterian Church, Birmingham, Alabama. Visitation will follow in the courtyard.

Harry was born in in Knoxville in 1934, while his father was working in Tennessee with the TVA. After stops in North Carolina and Missouri, they returned to their Birmingham roots where Harry lived throughout most of his life. He graduated from Ensley High School in 1954 and Auburn University in 1957. Following college, he became an officer in the US Navy, serving on the USS Valley Forge. He met Nancy Mae Andrews in Norfolk, and they were married in 1959. When he returned to Birmingham, he worked for Birmingham Water Works and Standard Oil Company. In 1977, he began his own business, Watkins Engineering Consultants, which grew into a well-respected firm providing engineering services across the southeast. He was a dedicated volunteer for Birmingham’s Firehouse Shelter and a faithful member of Shades Valley Presbyterian Church for sixty years, serving as deacon and elder. Eternally loyal and generous of spirit, Harry formed deep relationships with generations of friends, neighbors and colleagues. His warm welcome and witty humor made him a joy to be around. Harry enjoyed writing emails without paragraph breaks, adjusting his golf score cards and “cheering” on Auburn football while he paced in front of the television. His greatest joy, though, revolved around his family, his friends and his church.

Harry is survived by his faithful wife of 62 years, Nancy Andrews Watkins, his daughter Allison Watkins Clark (Pat) of Altamonte Springs, Florida, his son Thomas Jeans Watkins (Julia) of Wilson, North Carolina, and five grandchildren, Megan (Matt), Amy (Jordan), David, Mary Thomas and Jack, as well as two “brothers” John Andrews of Lebanon, New Hampshire and Charles Andrews of Herndon, Virginia. He is preceded in death by his parents Harry and Maurine Watkins.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial in Harry’s honor to Shades Valley Presbyterian Church, 2305 Montevallo Road, Birmingham, Al, 25223.