John William "Tater" Spinks

1947 - 2026

On New Year's Day, 1947, Lillian and Roy Spinks welcomed their 5th child, a boy named John William, nicknamed by his older
siblings as "Tater," and that name stuck with him his whole life. Born and raised in St. Andrew's (Panama City), he spent most of his days down at St. Andrew's Bay, where he fell in love with fishing, crabbing, scalloping, shrimping and just being on the water.
At age 11, he began cleaning fish on St. Andrew's dock along with his cousin, Chester Wiliams, for 50 cents a fish, making sometimes as much as $3 a day. That was lot of money for a kid back then.
At the age of 13, he and Chester moved to Capt. Anderson's Marina and became a deckhand on the 2a.m. trips and missing most school days. He got to experience lots of fun stuff and he really enjoyed life on the water. After working for several big companies on beautiful boats as a deck hand and first mate, he eventually became Capt. John "Tater" Spinks and captained many company boats, his own charter boats, and enjoyed the success of fishing the Gulf of Mexico before ending his later years in Boca Grande
fishing for tarpon. He mentored so many young men who loved and respected him of his knowledge of fishing.
While working in the Florida Keys, Tater met and fell in love with his greatest catch, his wife, Mary, from Minnesota. This Past December 23rd marked 44 years of marriage. Mary became stepmother to Tater's two children, Mellissa and John Jr. Who blessed Tater and Mary with many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Tater became an avid gardener after retiring from fishing four years ago due to cancer and treatments. He grew the sweetest tomatoes and beautiful okra in five-gallon Home Depot buckets.
Tater touched so many lives over his 79 years on this earth. His family and friends lost a true friend and to his family and so many he was a legend on the water. He could tell stories like no other and had the best sense of humor and an unforgettable laugh.
He is survived by his loving wife,
Mary Kilian Spinks, and siblings Ann Thomas of St. Petersburg, Marion Padgett Bryant (Fred) of Panama City, Sara Weaver of St. Petersburg, Connie Delaney Garrett (Wayne) of Sarasota, Jerry Delaney (Teresa) of Ocala, Richard Spinks of Sarasota, Nancy Webb (Danny) of Ocala and Ray Webb (Carol) of Panama City. He is also survived by his children Mellissa Spinks Campbell (Don) of Virginia Beach, VA and John Spinks Jr. of Roswell, GA., and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by Roy Spinks Sr., Lillian Welch Webb, Roy Spinks Jr., Frank Thomas, Paul Weaver and Eva Spinks.
Tater's life will be celebrated from 11am until 3pm on Friday, April 17th at Rotonda Golf and Country Club – The Hills, 100 Rotonda Circle, Rotonda West, FL 33947.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to either Mary Spinks or to Florida Cancer Specialists