Remembering John
John Ollis
John and his wife Brenda served with us over the last few years and had recently moved to Port Orange, FL. He served by giving the crew a stamp so they could get on the bus to go shopping. When he asked someone if they were going shopping and they said, "no", he would reply in his deep Southern accent, "Save ya money." The crew and the volunteers got a big kick out of this. His calming, easy-going personality helped to promote the ministry as a place of peace. We miss serving with them and our prayers are with Brenda and the family.
Obituary provided by the family:
Johnny Ray Ollis, 83, of Port Orange, Florida, passed away peacefully on Friday, May 2, 2025. John was born to Quinton and Lois Ollis on January 17, 1942, in Lenoir, North Carolina.
John is survived by his wife Brenda, Thomas (son) and Lisa Ollis, daughter in-law Pamela Ollis, Scott (stepson) and Julie Farrar, Chip and Robyn (stepdaughter) Greek, and his four grandchildren Elizabeth Ollis, Tyler Greek, Ethan Greek, and Megan Greek. He was preceded in death by his son Darin Ollis (Pamela).
John graduated from Gamewell High School in Lenoir in 1960. He later graduated as a civil engineer from North Carolina State University and then following Officer Candidate School, he was commissioned June 23, 1967, as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army. He served with the US Army Corps of Engineers in various places, including Thule, Greenland, and was promoted to First Lieutenant.
John was honorably discharged in 1969 and went to work for JA Jones Construction Company and later rose to lead their international operations division as a company Vice President. He oversaw numerous projects, most notably the building of the 88-story Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. At the time, these buildings were the tallest in the world…beating the Sears Tower in Chicago by 22 feet! After retiring from JA Jones, John led various construction projects near the home he built in Brevard, North Carolina. He was later recruited out of retirement to complete his last construction endeavor overseeing the construction of the new US Embassy in Beijing, China.
In retirement, John settled back in Brevard, North Carolina. As a strong Christian, John was involved with his church, The Gideons International, The Baptist Disaster Relief Ministry, and Live Again Ministries. Throughout most of his life, John was an avid and accomplished musician and singer. He loved playing his Martin guitar, his favorite among several other instruments, and singing for family and friends and at church. Many were blessed and entertained by his talent and humor over the years. John and Brenda enjoyed traveling around the world, including several adventures in Scotland, other European countries, a drive from North Carolina to Alaska, Russia, and many places during their time in China. He moved to Florida in 2017 to be closer to his children and grandchildren, where he lived in Melbourne and then briefly in Port Orange.
A memorial service will be held May 20 th at 9:00am at the Cape Canaveral National Cemetery. Pastor Mitchel Dubolsky from John’s church in Melbourne, Bowe Gardens Baptist Church, will lead the service. There will also be a service June 7th at Bethel Baptist Church in Morganton, North Carolina. The service will be led by their former pastor in Brevard, NC, Pastor Bobby Owings, who currently leads The Gathering worship community in Surf City, North Carolina.
The family respectfully requests that in-lieu of flowers, donations be made to Bethel Baptist Church or The Gideons International. We give all the praise and thanks to God for allowing John to have such a productive and enjoyable life that touched and blessed so many people!
Donations can be made in John’s honor to:
• Bethel Baptist Church (3861 Pax Hill Rd. Morganton, NC 28655)
• The Gideons International (gideons.org)
