Opal Vance Street

Opal Vance Street was born on December 12, 1935 to Z. Franklin and Dorothy Mae McClain Street. He was a retired engineer for Florida DOT. He was predeceased by his parents, Frank and Dorothy Mae; son, Kenneth; sister, Marie Holbrook; and brothers, Earl and Ernest Street.

He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Sharon Tyson Street; daughter, Karen Johnson (Tim); step-daughter, Lisa Barnes; grandchildren, Tiffanie Mallory (Justin), John Hogland (Niki), Colby Johnson, Aaron Barnes, Moriah Barnes, Caleb Barnes (Lindsey); great-grandchildren, Landon, Trenton, Dylan, Evan, and Brady; brother, Wayne Street, and sisters; Ileen Crawford, Elizabeth Edwards, Violet Puls, Lucille Black, and Carolyn Filyaw.

Vance worked for the FL DOT first as a surveyor, and roadway inspector until 1972. He then went into the prestress concrete construction division, installing high-stress cable and steel and forms and poured high strength concrete. He remained in this position for 24 years, supervising personnel at different yards. He retired from the DOT in 1995 as an Engineer after 39 years. Shortly following, he began working with a consulting firm where he remained until 2004.

He was known for his great love of helping others through his local church, local food ministries, and broader ministry outreaches across various missionary support ministries and truck stop ministries through the years as well as taking it upon himself to go and do for widows as they had need of work around the home. Always quick to offer help to anyone in need, neighbor, friend, or stranger.

He was an avid student of the Bible, taking great pleasure in word of our Lord. He spent much time reading and expanding his knowledge of the things of God. He loved to build things, to garden and grow things, to find creative ways to make things work when others would have given up. He was very resourceful. He was known for his sense of humor. Always had a good joke or story to share. He loved spending time with his grandchildren; he loved to cook and invent new recipes. He enjoyed being out and working with his tractor. He was a man of the outdoors, having grown up on a family-owned sugar cane mill and saw mill business, as well as a cotton farm in rural Mississippi.

He will be remembered as a good man with a big, kind, heart, whose greatest desire was to serve to the best of his ability and to grow to be what God would have him to be. Though he has traveled on before us to the next stage of his life and has left behind his earthly habitation, he will remain with us always in memory as we travel on toward our destination to rejoin him at home. Never forgotten, we eagerly anticipate our reunion.

Services will be held on Saturday, July 26, 2025 beginning at 11:00 a.m. at First Thonotosassa Missionary Baptist Church located at 10650 McIntosh Road, Thonotosassa, Florida 33592. Service will be preceded by visitation from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary and followed by a Celebration of Life reception in the fellowship hall of the same.