Granddaddy's Cowgirl
We love and miss you Granddaddy.
Johnny Dewayne Kittle
On September 9, 2014, Johnny Dewayne Kittle, a resident of Geraldine, passed away at the age of 55.
While his time in this world was short for those he leaves behind, Johnny's impact on his family, his friends, and the community will never be forgotten.
Johnny Kittle lived his life every day with passion. In his earlier years, Johnny could be found most any night in the woods, coon hunting. He served as President of the Sand Mountain Coon Hunters Association. His best times coon hunting were spent alongside his favorite Treeing Walker hound, Night Champion Kittle's Alabama Pride.
Johnny was also an avid turkey hunter and deer hunter. He was co-founder of the Iron Gate Hunting Club and served as President. In his lifetime, Johnny took well over 50 gobblers. He harvested a 12 point and a 10 point buck, club records at the Iron Gate Hunting Club.
As a businessman, Johnny came from humble beginnings. To make ends meet as a young father and husband, he trapped muskrats and sold the furs for $5 each. After attending Coosa Valley Technical College to learn the trade of welding, Johnny turned Kittle Welding, a one man operation in a shop by his home, into Kittle Fabrication, LLC, a steel construction business that provided structural steel and handrails on projects across the Southeast, from the Guntersville State Park to Disney World and most everywhere in between.
Johnny's true calling in business was farming. In 1972, at the age of fourteen, he obtained a government agricultural loan to purchase cattle.
Johnny built that cattle operation over the next 42 years to approximately 150 head of cattle. In recent years, he formed Kittle Gelbvieh Farms, which focused on registered Gelbvieh cattle. Johnny took great pride in and great care of his cattle, always tending to their needs even before his own.
Aside from his many successes and accomplishments, Johnny's greatest legacy is a family that loved him dearly.
Those who will miss him most are his wife, Dana; his children, Dustin (Michelle) and Lauren and his granddaughter, Abigail. Johnny is also survived by his father, Wayne Kittle; his mother, Judy Long; his brothers, Mike Kittle, Joey Kittle, Troy Kittle, and Lance Kittle; and his sister, Vicki Oliver.
He is preceded in death by his grandparents, Raymon and Ruth Westbrook; his grandparents, Odis and Era Kittle, and his sister, Patricia.
Johnny Kittle was a man you would be proud to call your friend.
He was honest. He was hard-working. He cared. He cared about people, and he cared about animals. He never liked to see either mistreated.
He spent a lifetime working to build a reputation that his family would be proud of - he did and we are.
Johnny's family and friends will be received at W.T. Wilson Funeral Chapel in Rainsville on Friday, September 12, 2014 from 4:30 to 8 p.m. A memorial service and celebration of Johnny Kittle's life will take place on Saturday, September 13, 2014 at 11 a.m. at W.T. Wilson Funeral Chapel. Burial will follow at Macedonia Baptist Church Cemetery (property adjoining the Kittle home), allowing Johnny to continue watching over his family and his farm that he so adored.
While his time in this world was short for those he leaves behind, Johnny's impact on his family, his friends, and the community will never be forgotten.
Johnny Kittle lived his life every day with passion. In his earlier years, Johnny could be found most any night in the woods, coon hunting. He served as President of the Sand Mountain Coon Hunters Association. His best times coon hunting were spent alongside his favorite Treeing Walker hound, Night Champion Kittle's Alabama Pride.
Johnny was also an avid turkey hunter and deer hunter. He was co-founder of the Iron Gate Hunting Club and served as President. In his lifetime, Johnny took well over 50 gobblers. He harvested a 12 point and a 10 point buck, club records at the Iron Gate Hunting Club.
As a businessman, Johnny came from humble beginnings. To make ends meet as a young father and husband, he trapped muskrats and sold the furs for $5 each. After attending Coosa Valley Technical College to learn the trade of welding, Johnny turned Kittle Welding, a one man operation in a shop by his home, into Kittle Fabrication, LLC, a steel construction business that provided structural steel and handrails on projects across the Southeast, from the Guntersville State Park to Disney World and most everywhere in between.
Johnny's true calling in business was farming. In 1972, at the age of fourteen, he obtained a government agricultural loan to purchase cattle.
Johnny built that cattle operation over the next 42 years to approximately 150 head of cattle. In recent years, he formed Kittle Gelbvieh Farms, which focused on registered Gelbvieh cattle. Johnny took great pride in and great care of his cattle, always tending to their needs even before his own.
Aside from his many successes and accomplishments, Johnny's greatest legacy is a family that loved him dearly.
Those who will miss him most are his wife, Dana; his children, Dustin (Michelle) and Lauren and his granddaughter, Abigail. Johnny is also survived by his father, Wayne Kittle; his mother, Judy Long; his brothers, Mike Kittle, Joey Kittle, Troy Kittle, and Lance Kittle; and his sister, Vicki Oliver.
He is preceded in death by his grandparents, Raymon and Ruth Westbrook; his grandparents, Odis and Era Kittle, and his sister, Patricia.
Johnny Kittle was a man you would be proud to call your friend.
He was honest. He was hard-working. He cared. He cared about people, and he cared about animals. He never liked to see either mistreated.
He spent a lifetime working to build a reputation that his family would be proud of - he did and we are.
Johnny's family and friends will be received at W.T. Wilson Funeral Chapel in Rainsville on Friday, September 12, 2014 from 4:30 to 8 p.m. A memorial service and celebration of Johnny Kittle's life will take place on Saturday, September 13, 2014 at 11 a.m. at W.T. Wilson Funeral Chapel. Burial will follow at Macedonia Baptist Church Cemetery (property adjoining the Kittle home), allowing Johnny to continue watching over his family and his farm that he so adored.
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