John Byrum

John James Byrum
October 23, 1932 – October 2, 2013

John James Byrum experienced ultimate healing and went home to his Father on October 2, 2013. Mr. Byrum has found rest in the arms of God; his earthly remains will be interred at the China Spring Cemetery at noon on Saturday, October 5th, 2013.

Mr. Byrum was born on October 23, 1932 in Kosse, Texas to Earnest and Beulah Byrum. He spent his youth in Kosse and then joined the Navy in 1951. Mr. Byrum served in the Korean War until his honorable discharge in 1953. While in the Navy, he met the love of his life, Donna Marie Templey, in Toronto, Ohio. After his discharge and marriage, John and Donna moved to Robinson, Texas where he worked for General Tire for 32 years. In his later years, he served as a lay minister at Central United Methodist church in Waco, TX.

Mr. Byrum will be remembered as a deeply spiritual man firmly and faithfully rooted in his relationship with God. The Bible described King David as a man who sought after the heart of God; the same could be said of John Byrum. The night before his death, his greatest concern was that he had his Bible so he could read it, as he did every night. Mr. Byrum will also be remembered as a Godly and loving husband, devoted to his wife and sacrificially caring for her in their later years. John was also a loving father and grandfather who took joy in all of his children and grandchildren. He lovingly sacrificed himself for the betterment of his children, and he will always be remembered by them with love and fondness. His family and many friends will miss his genuine, loving heart.

Mr. Byrum was preceded in death by his wife Donna Marie Byrum and a son, David Scott Byrum and is joyfully reunited with both.

He is survived by his daughter Patricia Byrum Harvey and her husband Stephen; his son John James Byrum II and his wife Sandy, and his daughters Melissa Frazier, Amanda Langley, and Stephanie Byrum; his son Christopher Lee Byrum and his wife Marilyn, and their daughter Milena; his daughter-in-law Cheri Byrum Hunter and her husband David Hunter, and her sons Nathanial and Benjamin. He is also survived by his brother Harold Byrum and numerous great grandchildren.

Pallbearers are Nathanial Byrum, Benjamin Byrum, Nathan Langley, Marshall Frazier, Stephen Harvey, and Bernard Whitney. Honorary pallbearers are James Harvey, John Skubik, and Tom Yarbrough.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers, memorials be made to the building fund at Central United Methodist Church or the Christmas child ministry at Columbus Avenue Baptist Church in Waco, TX.