John Wiggins Dawson Jr.

John Dawson was known as an amazingly generous man and he was dearly loved by his family and a host of friends. He was born in Pensacola, FL in 1935 and departed this life March 25, 2021 after a long struggle with health issues . He was committed to his Catholic Faith and was very active at St. James Catholic Church. He never procrastinated and his favorite quote was “anything worth doing is worth doing right now.” He was a proud United States Marine and served in the Korean War as a tank commander. He loved playing golf and hunting He loved art and enjoyed painting, drawing and collecting Art. He was especially gifted with a roll of duck tape. He designed and built the home that he and his family have enjoyed since 1964. He loved his farm in St. Clair County and spent many hours working and enjoying the animals. He was cofounder of Dawson Construction company with his brother, Tom Dawson building many government buildings throughout the United States.

He was preceded in death by his parents John W. Dawson, Sr and Evelyn Watts Dawson, his brothers Tom Dawson and Wayne Dawson. He is survived by his loving wife of 60 years, Joan Knowles Dawson, his children, Bart Dawson(Melanie) and Celeste Dawson Mukundan (Chetan). His beloved grand children Chathan, Chloe, and Luke Mukundan, John Derrick, Staley Dawson, and Jordan Morgan Forsythe( Taylor) and one great grand child Jude D. Forsythe. He is survived by his sisters Helen Dawson and Judy Crain, brothers Jim and Mike Dawson. He leaves behind special friends George Ford, Tim Russo, John Crane, Ray Hutchison, Bill Davis, Dr. H. B. Thompson, Alan Berman and brother in law, Cecil Knowles.

The family will receive friends and loved ones at St. James Catholic Church Saturday at 12:00 PM till 1:00 PM and the funeral mass will be at 1:00 PM with Father Jose Chacko presiding. The graveside service will be held later in the day for the family. In lieu of flowers, give to your favorite charity or his favorite charity which was the Catholic Center of Concern at St. James Catholic Church of Gadsden. In order to keep everyone safe the family is requesting that everyone wear a mask.