John William Birchfield

John William Birchfield, 79, passed away December 1, 2024 at his home in Amarillo, TX. 

John was born to Robert Henry Birchfield and Bettie Rose (Kerr) Birchfield on September 9, 1945 and was a life-long resident of Amarillo attending Margaret Wills Elementary, Sam Houston Middle School and graduating from Tascosa High School in 1964. He graduated from Amarillo College in Amarillo, attended The University of Texas in Austin and graduated from West Texas State University (now WTAMU) in Canyon. John found his true calling in 1977 when he began his career at Amarillo Public Library where he served at the reference and information desk in the downtown branch for many years and was known for his vast knowledge of almost any subject. Years after retirement, people approached him and asked if he had worked at the library because they recognized his voice. John was a true gentleman and never met a stranger or forgot anyone he had previously met and could usually call them by name. He regularly kept in touch with school friends, library co-workers, and other friends by having weekly lunch dates. John enjoyed watching Texas team sports, was a die-hard University of Texas football fan and an avid tennis player for over 50 years. Among his hobbies were reading any and everything (with a photographic memory), learning (and using) new words and traveling. He absorbed everything he read or heard about history, The Beatles and movies, having a huge collection of each one.

He was preceded in death by his parents, “Bob” and Bettie Rose, brother Richard Birchfield and dear friends Mary Kay Snell and Mike Williams. 

He is survived by Kerr cousins David, Tim, Paul, Catherine, Marilyn, Virginia and Joe, “old” friends Wink Clark, Don Parr, Greg & Kathy Thomas and Petra and Justin Williams and special friends Beth Haddix and Ben Snell.

A celebration of John’s life will be held at 2:00 PM, Friday, December 20, 2024 in the Ware Chapel at Polk Street Methodist Church in Amarillo where he and his family were long time members.