John O’Neal Grant, Sr.

O'Neal Grant’s life motto was “the joy is in the journey.” And indeed, his journey on this earth was filled with much joy! But on March 1, his joy was made complete as he went to meet his Savior.

John O’Neal Grant, Sr., the youngest of eight children, was born on June 16, 1936 to the late Charles Eugene and Thelma O’Neal Grant. A Valdosta High School graduate, he was a proud Wildcat who played football for the legendary Wright Bazemore. He then went on to receive an accounting degree from Valdosta State.

In his teenage years, he fell head over heels for the former Faye Allbritton, whom he married in 1955.

In the late 1960s, O’Neal, Faye, and their two oldest children John and Liz moved to Dunedin, New Zealand, where they served as missionaries. As part of their travels, he was able to take his family to visit countries all over the world, including Belgium, Luxembourg, France, England, Switzerland, Germany, Gibraltar, Australia, Pago Pago, and even South Africa! They returned to Valdosta in 1970 and were soon joined by the fifth member of the family: their daughter Susie.

O’Neal had a long, wonderful career with the U.S. Postal Service. It will not surprise anyone who knew him to hear that the best parts of the job, for him, were the people he got to know. For several years, his work took him and Faye to Albany, where he was the Assistant Postmaster. Ultimately, they settled back in Valdosta.

O’Neal’s retirement from the USPS did not mean he stopped working! A classic people person, he enjoyed his retirement gigs as anything from a Wal-Mart shelf-stocker to a security guard to a John Deere inventory taker. He especially loved his time working for Harold Norman at John Deere and getting to have lunch with the owners of the various locations he inventoried.

He loved Humphrey Bogart movies, Snoopy, and World War II history. In fact, he knew more about World War II than most people’s brains would hold. He was quite the foodie as well! He loved a good restaurant, but he was also a grill master and the world’s champion of making the perfect batch of boiled peanuts. He was also a devout fan of both Valdosta Wildcat and Georgia Bulldogs football and, if an event on his schedule conflicted with a game, he could occasionally be found toting around a portable radio to listen in! He had an incredibly sharp wit and an uncanny knack for finding the perfect (often obscure) emoji to include in his texts.

O’Neal’s family was incredibly important to him. Coming from a large extended family, he took both Grant and O’Neal family reunions very seriously. And he transitioned with aplomb from baby of the family to family patriarch, a hat he wore beautifully.

He was a dedicated, loving, and proud husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He always had a joke, story, or game up his sleeve. He was something of a card shark, having been trained by his wife to play rummy by her family’s “River Street Rules.” The family always knew they were in for a treat when they heard him say “Wanna let’s play a game?”

When his first grandchild, James, was quite young, O’Neal was playing with him and pretended to be a pig. He told James, “You can call me old snort!” James responded by calling him “Old Nort,” and the nickname stuck. To his grandchildren, and to many others, he was thereafter known as Nort. In fact, in his last few days, when a nurse asked him what people called him, he responded with “Nort.”

The only thing more important than family to O’Neal was (and is!) his love for his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He was a lifelong member of Central Avenue Church of Christ. One of the highlights of his retirement years was teaching the elementary-school boys on Wednesday nights. Many nights, the Grants and Klimkos would carpool to church services in John Klimko’s SUV, which O’Neal nicknamed the “Joy Bus.” He also for several years led up a ministry to the church’s neighborhood kids, leading to many wonderful relationships. And he spent many years working with the Kairos ministry in town. He poured into many people in his life!

He could often be found reading his Bible. And no one could be around him for very long without hearing him sing (in that wonderful bass voice) a worship song, even as he walked around the house. One of his last conversations in the hospital was with a nurse, making sure she knew Jesus!

Although on earth, we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror, now O’Neal sees the Lord face to face! Now he knows fully, even as he is fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12.

O’Neal is survived by his wife of nearly seventy years, Faye, along with his daughters and sons-in-law, Liz and John Klimko and Susie and Walter Altman, all of Valdosta. He is also survived by his grandchildren and their families: James, Hannah, Holden, and Merritt Grant of Charlotte, North Carolina; William, Sarah, Webb, and Atlas Grant of Denton, North Carolina; and Katheryn Klimko of Atlanta. He is also survived by his sister, Dorothy Grant Young, sisters in-law, Carlyen Grant, Susan Grant Jackson, and Sylvia Allbritton, and his brother in-law, Wallace Allbritton, and his precious nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his son, John O’Neal Grant, Jr.

His family and friends will miss him greatly. But we do not grieve as those who have no hope! For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14.

A funeral service for O’Neal will be held at 3pm on Sunday, March 23, 2025 in the chapel of the Carson McLane Funeral Home with Mr. John Klimko officiating. The family will receive friends and family prior to the service from 2-3pm. O’Neal will be entombed in the Mausoleum at McLane Riverview Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Central Avenue Church of Christ Faith Avenue Sunday School, 304 East Central Avenue, Valdosta, GA 31602. Online condolences to the family may be shared on the obituary page at www.mclanefuneralservices.com.

Carson McLane Funeral Home