John Forrest Collins

John F Collins, 74, of Roanoke passed away on March 11, 2020 at the V. A. Medical Center in Salem. Born 30 July 1945 in Dothan Alabama, John was the son of Frances Davis Collins of Lynchburg, who predeceased him.

John is survived by his brother, Richard Collins of Lynchburg and two cousins, Laura Hoffman (Paul) of Charlottesville, and Richard Ricketts of Lynchburg, He is also survived by his close friend Garland Harper of Lynchburg, and his family of fellow residents and staff at Magnolia Ridge, Roanoke.

John was a faithful member of Northminster Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Madison Heights. He was educated in Amherst County Schools and was a graduate of CVCC. He served in the USAF as a communications specialist in Okinawa, Hawaii, Korea, Thailand, and other interesting assignments. After leaving the Air Force, he spent many years working at Boy Scout and YMCA camps. He enriched many lives as a home companion for handicapped individuals, and also children whose parents traveled, and he worked as a car host for the state of NC on Amtrak state-financed trains.

John's real passion was travel; especially train travel. When he was not traveling, he liked to spend the day at a train station with other rail fans, watching rail traffic. Later in life, when travel became too difficult, he still planned long train trips and many people enjoyed hearing of his travel adventures through his stories and many detailed travel scrapbooks.

The family would like to thank all the dedicated health care professionals at the V.A. Medical Center who supported John, and us, through this final journey.

Funeral services will be Monday, March 16 at 11:00 at Whitten Monelison Chapel, Madison Heights. The family will greet friends after the service and burial will be at 1:00 at Fort Hill Memorial Park in Lynchburg.

Those wishing to make a donation should consider Northminster Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 106 Clearview Road, Madison Heights, or any Veteran's support organization of their choice.

To send online condolences to the family, please visit www.whittenmonelison.com. Whitten Funeral Home and Cremation Services Monelison Chapel, Madison Heights is serving the family.