ABINGDON, VIRGINIA

WILLIAM (BILL) LEE OSBORNE

William (Bill) Lee Osborne, age 93, of Abingdon, VA, passed away at his home on December 8, 2016, as he entered into the presence of the Lord. He was surrounded by his loving family and friends.
Mr. Osborne was born December 6, 1923, in West Jefferson, NC, to the late Reuben Osborne and Dicie Roark Osborne South.
Mr. Osborne was a veteran serving in the U.S. Navy, where he served as a Pharmacists Mate 3rd class during WW II at the U.S. Naval Special Hospital in Yosemite National Park. After service he returned to Tennessee, and joined the Johnson City Soldiers baseball team. In 1948, he met and married the love of his life, Wanda Johnson. During his time playing with the Johnson City Soldiers he received minor league offers from the Washington Senators and the Cardinals. He started working as an electrician for Clinchfield Coal Company and was recruited to pitch for local teams. He was a pitcher for the Dante Miners and the Coeburn Blues. He quit playing ball in 1955 after sustaining injuries from a work related accident. In 1983, he retired as an electrician from Clinchfield Coal Company. He and his wife Wanda also owned and operated Woodland Market.
He was a caring husband, devoted father and a loving Papaw to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Bill never met a stranger and his sweet smile touched everyone he met. He was a faithful member of Woodland Baptist Church and a member of the Abingdon Masonic Lodge #48.
He loved spending time with family and friends, and cherished his memories made with his children and grandchildren. He enjoyed fishing, quail and dove hunting, gardening, spending time outdoors, sports, and building furniture.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife, Wanda Johnson Osborne; daughter, Karen Osborne Combs; daughter-in-law, Linda Woody Osborne; brothers, Earl South and Vaughn Osborne; sister, Virginia Bailey; father and mother-in-law, Frank and Nola Johnson; and brothers-in-law, Carl Johnson and Olan Goodnight.
Mr. Osborne is survived by his son, William Kyle Osborne; son-in-law, Allen Combs; grandchildren, Michelle Grubb and husband Randy; Joshua Osborne and wife Melissa; Pagiela Hill and husband Gregory; cherished great-grandchildren, Ethan Grubb, Madelyn and Elizabeth Osborne.
He is also survived by sisters, Lorraine Whitson (Jay), Eleene Goodnight, and Linda Dejarnette; brothers, Bob South (Bonnie), Charles South (Lillie) and Jack South; sister-in-laws, Dolores Bowman (Denny) and Alma South; brother-in-law, Louis Johnson. Along with his immediate family, those left to cherish the many memories made with Mr. Osborne are numerous special nieces and nephews.
Special thanks to Karen Helton, Phala Fulks, Melissa Leonard, Becky Dunn, Hometown Hospice, the Washington County Life Saving Crew and the many other family and friends for the care they provided. The family wishes to thank Jerry and Evelyn Simmons, Mike and Dorothy Phipps, Troy and Meldena Compton, John and Kyong O’Keefe and John Showalter for their friendship throughout the years and all of Mr. Osborne’s surrounding neighbors in Woodland Hills.
Funeral services will be conducted at 11:00 A.M. Monday, December 12, 2016, at Woodland Baptist Church with Pastor Bob McCormick officiating. Entombment will follow at Forest Hills Memory Gardens, Chapel of Memories Mausoleum. Active pallbearers will be Joshua Osborne, Randy Grubb, Allen Combs, Gregory Hill, Ethan Grubb and Gary Scyphers. Honorary pallbearers will be the men of Woodland Baptist Church, Jerry Simmons, Troy Compton, and John Showalter. The family will receive friends at the Frost Funeral Home Sunday, December 11, 2016, from 5:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to: Woodland Baptist Church, 18171 Woodland Hills Road, Abingdon, VA, 24210 in memory of Mr. Bill Osborne or the Washington County Life Saving Crew, P.O. Box 65, Abingdon, VA, 24212.