John Dayton Lee, 77, of Paris, Tennessee, died Thursday, March 14, 2024.
Born Friday, April 12, 1946, in Paris, Tennessee, he was the son of the late Winfred Lee and the late Pauline Stockdale Lee. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by a sister: Sandra Lambert; a son: Ken Jones; and his dog and best friend: Jamie Lee.
John retired from Westvaco after a career spent cruising thousands of acres of timber all over West Tennessee and Kentucky.
After playing basketball at UT Martin during his freshman year, he transferred and earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and became a Vol For Life aka VFL. I
In retirement, John’s love of the outdoors never ended, and when he wasn’t crafting one-of-a-kind walking sticks, you could find him fishing, busting a move with his unique, improvised dances, or hanging out with his buddies at the Ducks Club.
His laugh was contagious, and his sense of humor was legendary.
He loved jokes, pranks, and good comics like “The Far Side” and “Bloom County”.
Along with his wife, he is survived by his children: Mark Lee of Brentwood, Tennessee, Breck (Joe) Frye, of Paris, Tennessee, and Mark (Lizzy) Douglas, of Elkins, West Virginia; and his beloved do: Evie.
Ridgeway Funeral Home will be handling the arrangements.
A Celebration of Life Gathering with music, dancing, stories, and refreshments will be held Friday, April 26, 2024, from 4 until 8 p.m. in the Lakeview Room at the Lodge at Paris Landing, located at 400 Lodge Rd. Buchanan, Tennessee, 38222.
All friends are welcome to join in the celebration of his life.
In honor of John’s love for animals and his forestry work, the family asks that memorials be made to the Henry County Sheriff’s Office Animal Shelter, 210 Forrest Heights Rd., Paris, Tennessee, 38242, or the Project Learning Tree, c/o Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Inc., P.O. Box 424048, Washington, D.C. 20042.