William J. Maddox, Sr.

William Jones (Bill) Maddox went to be with the Lord Jesus on October 28, 2024. He was born at the old St. Luke’s Hospital on December 15, 1939. He was pre-deceased by his parents Sam Jones Maddox and Kathleen Mobley Maddox and his wife Roilea Maddox.

Except for the 3 ½ years of military service, Bill was a life-long resident of Jacksonville, Florida, graduating from Andrew Jackson Senior High School in 1958. Upon graduation from high school, Bill enlisted in the United States Army. He trained as an Infantryman at Ft. Jackson, South Carolina and Ft. Benning, Georgia and trained as a Paratrooper at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. He went on to serve a year with the 8th Army in South Korea. Upon returning to the states, Bill was assigned to the 28th Infantry Regiment (The Black Lions) of the 1st Infantry Division at Ft. Riley, Kansas, where he met his first wife, Janet Peterson. He attained the position of Drill Sargent and served in this capacity for the balance of his enlistment. Bill and Janet married and had two children, Sandra and William J., Jr.

Using the G.I. Bill, Bill earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of North Florida. He and his sister, Darlene, were in the first full graduating class of UNF in 1974, something of which their parents were quite proud. While attending college, Bill also worked at Montgomery Industries for 19 years as a Draftsman/Designer and was eventually promoted to Production Administrator. In 1984, Bill successfully started and ran his own company, Maddox Technical Services, for 20 years.

Bill and his wonderful wife Lee were avid dancers and members of the local dance community. In 1988, Bill co-founded a local dance club, the Florida Boppers, Inc. Within 2 years the club grew to over 400 members. During this time, Bill also founded the National Boppers Hall of Fame, www.nationalboppershof.com and the National FastDance Association (NFA) www.fastdancers.com. With over 200 social dance clubs and over 200 major multi-day dance events nationwide, Bill was very proud that the NFA has become the largest dance organization of its kind in America. It’s anticipated that its current membership nationally of over 400,000 dancers will eventually grow to millions of affiliated clubs, events, and dancers. In the spring of 2024, Bill’s stepson, Chris Cayanas, took over the National FastDance Association to continue Bill’s legacy as his health began to decline.

In his teens and early twenties, Bill was an avid hunter. He had many fond memories of numerous hunting trips to Texas, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and the Adirondacks in New York state with his father. He also enjoyed dove, pheasant and quail hunting in Florida and Georgia with his father. Bill loved and respected his father and mother as very exceptional parents who raised their four children in the right way and to love the Lord.

Despite these accomplishments, Bill believed that the most rewarding and satisfying times in his life were those years when he served the Lord Jesus as a member of the old Main Street Baptist Church and the Heckscher Drive Baptist Church. In the latter, Bill raised up his children and happily served as a Sunday School teacher for adult men, a Training Union teacher, an usher, and a deacon.

Bill is survived by his two children, Sandra Shields (Mike) and his son, Billy, Jr., three grandchildren, Samantha, Geoffrey and Angelica, three great grandchildren, Julissa, Liliana, and J.J., three sisters, Margo Adams, Glenda Miller (Bobby), and Darlene Morton, a step-daughter, Karen Dill (David), a step-son Chris Cayanas (Jennifer) and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

The funeral service will be held at Highlands Baptist Church on November 6, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. with Visitation one hour prior at 10:00 a.m. After a brief military ceremony, Bill will be interred at the Jacksonville National Cemetery on Laney Road at 1:00 p.m.