Walker, John Harvey, 91, passed away surrounded by family at Ft. Sanders Regional Hospital on Saturday, January 11, 2014. He was born on October 27, 1922 in South Knoxville, and grew up in the Oakwood area of the city before moving back to South Knoxville as an adult. During WWII he served as an Army Private First Class in the European Theater, receiving five bronze stars. Upon returning home, he fell in love with his wife Ruth after a chance meeting in Chilhowee Park, where he asked her to go for a drive. She always said it was love at first sight. John worked at his own small business, Walker Insulation Company, until his retirement in the late 1980s, after which he lovingly cared for his bed-ridden wife until her death in 2005. He was a member of the Non-Denominational Christian Church. It is impossible to so briefly sum up the life of a man who saw so much, who grew up during the Great Depression and watched the world change over the course of almost a century. He was relentlessly hard working and honest, stoic and kind with a great sense of humor, patient, dedicated, and a faithful and loving husband, father, grandfather, and friend. John was preceded in death by: wife, Ruth Conatser Walker; daughter, June Walker; parents, Samuel A. Walker and Josephine Giffin Walker; sisters, Alberta Walker Lee, Sina Walker McAllen, Lillian Walker; brothers, Joseph B. “Jack” Walker, James Reece Walker, Samuel H. Walker. He is survived by: daughter, Ruth Walker; grandchildren, James F. Rice, Kerry B. Rice, Julia E. Jordan, Jessica C. Jordan; great-grandchildren, Ian M. Rice and Brynna E. Rice; along with many nieces, nephews, and loving friends. The family will receive friends at Berry Funeral Home from 11-1 pm on Tuesday, January 14, 2014. The funeral service will be at 1 pm followed by a procession to Woodlawn Cemetery for interment. Condolences may be offered at www.berryfuneralhome.com
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18