John Allen Lester

Kingsport, TN John Allen Lester, 80, passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on Sunday April 30, 2023. John, known as Allen, was born in Appalachia, VA on November 3, 1942. In the early years of his life, he worked with his father at their family-owned store called “Lesters’ Grocery”. Allen also went to trade school in Wise, VA and received a certification in carpentry. In 1963 he married the love of his life, Freda, and they eventually settled in Kingsport, TN where he worked for J.P. Stevens and Big Lots. He also lived in Burlington, NC where he worked for Glen Raven Mills. He was preceded in death by his parents, W.C. (Bill) Lester, Sr., and Edna (Chapman) Lester, and his brother, W.C. (Billy) Lester, Jr. “Movies (westerns), Music, and Memories”, were how Allen described himself. He was an avid collector of movies and music of all kinds and loved to discuss those topics often. He was a very nostalgic man. He cherished the memories he shared with family and friends. He loved to dance and could out skate anyone in his younger days. He would give you the shirt off his back and the last dollar to his name. He was a good man and we are all going to be lost without him. He was a wise, loving, and caring husband, father, grandfather, and friend. He had a sense of humor that always lit up the room. Those left to honor his memory are his loving wife of 59 years, Freda Kennedy Lester; two daughters, Pamela (David) Shaffer of Kingsport, TN, Sonja (Jeff) Rogers of Kingsport, TN; five grandchildren, Tiffany (Wes), Kara (Chris), Derek (Dolly), Soffia, and Luke; eight great grandchildren, Jayden, Stella, Asher, Noah, Kaytelin, Giddeon, Harper, and Channing; several special nieces and nephews whom he thought of as his own; special friends and neighbors, James, Melissa, and Makayla; he loved his little doe and fur baby, “Sugar”. The family will receive friends Thursday, May 4, 2023, from 12 noon to 2 pm at the Roy A. Green Funeral Home with services following in the funeral home chapel officiated by Dr. Nick Brewer. Burial will follow in the American Legion Cemetery. The family would like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Micah Shook and the nursing staff at Norton Community Hospital for their care and compassion during Allen’s time there.