John Thompson

THOMPSON Mr. John Thompson, age 68, formerly of Jacksonville, FL and Duluth, GA passed away on Friday, December 6, 2013 at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, GA. Born in Jacksonville, FL, he was the only son of two children, born to the late Julius Craig and Blanche Thompson. As a child his family lived in the Northshore Section of Jacksonville. He was a graduate of Andrew Jackson High School, Class of 1963. After high school, John attended the University of Florida before attending Jacksonville University. In 1965, he married a young lady whom he had grown up with, Faith Bowen. The newlyweds lived in Northshore and Hawthorne, FL before returning to Jacksonville in 1967. Upon returning to Jacksonville, he started a long career in the paper industry when he accepted employment at St. Regis Paper Company on Hecksher Drive. He grew in the industry and was later asked to transfer, within St. Regis, to Florence, SC. In 1980, he joined Stone Container in Lithonia, GA as a General Manager and Sales Manager. In the mid-1990s, John moved to Ponte Vedra Beach to oversee and coordinate the startup of a new plant on Hecksher Drive in Jacksonville. He attempted to slow down in the early 2000s when he moved to the woods of South Georgia in Americus. As an avid outdoorsman, he enjoyed the deer and turkey hunting as well as the fishing that this new area afforded. In 2011 he retired only to become a Consultant for KapStone Container where he remained active until his passing. In addition to being an avid hunter and fisherman, he enjoyed the game of golf and as he and Faith were raising their children in Duluth, he coached his son s Little League Baseball teams. Throughout the years of working to provide for his family, they had vacationed on the South Fletcher beachfront of Fernandina Beach for many years. Mr. Thompson loved his family, delighted in cheering on his beloved Florida Gators, loved the ocean, enjoyed quoting the movie The Big Lebowski and wouldn t hesitate to invite friends over for an impromptu BBQ or fish fry. Mr. Thompson leaves behind his wife of 48 years, Faith Bowen Thompson, their daughter, Amy Thompson Peterzell and her husband Scott, Atlanta, their son, Alex John Thompson and his wife Leah, Charleston, one sister, Brenda Thompson, Americus, GA, and three grandchildren, Zoe Peterzell, Griffin Peterzell and Leighton Thompson. Memorial services will be at 1:00 pm on Saturday, December 14, 2013 in the Burgess Chapel of Oxley Heard Funeral Home, Fernandina Beach, FL with Reverend Jackie Hayes, officiating. His family will receive friends on Saturday, at the funeral home from 12:00 noon until the hour of service with a reception following. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Habitat for Humanity International, 121 Habitat Street, Americus, GA 31709-3498 or online at http://www.habitat.org/. Please share his life story at http://www.oxleyheard.com OXLEY HEARD FUNERAL DIRECTORS, Amelia Island, FL Please Sign the Guestbook @ Jacksonville.com