Oct. 28, 1944 – April 14, 2019
On Palm Sunday George went to be with the Lord while surrounded by the family he loved so dearly. After a courageous battle with cancer, he is finally at peace.
George was born at home, the second of eleven children, to Granville Cecil Justus and Hazel (Hurley) Justus in Hurley, Virginia. He spent much of his childhood hunting hounds and working his family’s farmland. He left school in 5th grade to work various jobs to help support his family including plowing, logging and by age 14, coal mining. At 17 he moved to Flint, Michigan and began working in an automobile factory. He lived in Flint for about 5 years before returning to his hometown in Virginia where he met the love of his life, Pricy Jane Charles.
After a very short courtship, George and Pricy married in the Blackey Baptist Church on September 23rd, 1968 at ages 23 and 18. He returned to the coal mines where he worked until July of 1972 when they decided to head west to make a fresh start.
They left Virginia with only what they could haul in their Ford Galaxy sedan unsure of where they might end up or how long they would stay. After 3 days on the road, they pulled into the little town of Forks to visit Pricy’s sister Chloa. George soon fell in love with the landscape and abundance of game he could hunt. After a little convincing, Pricy agreed to stay as long as he could find work. It took just two short days for him to find a job splitting shake blocks. He quickly moved up to the position of shake sawyer. He continued to saw at various shake mills in Forks for the next 27 years when he retired in 1998 due to an injury.
During their marriage, George and Pricy raised 3 daughters. In 1974 Pricy’s niece, Lisa came by bus from Virginia to live with them at age 11. They took her in as their own and she became their first child. They tried to expand their family for many years without success until finally in November of 1991 they welcomed Shyliah into their life. This came as quite a surprise at ages 41 and 47, and after 23 years of marriage. Then, in May of 1993, they received yet another surprise with the addition of their third daughter Annika, completing their family.
In 1999 George and his family began attending the Forks First Baptist Church. He was later baptized there and devoted the rest of his life to Christ. Anyone who knew George knew that there were 3 things he valued more than anything: his relationship with God, his family and friends, and his hound hunting.
George is survived by his wife of 50 years, Pricy Justus. Daughters: Lisa Ryan (Jason Rogers), Shyliah Gorbett (Andrew), and Annika Justus (Tony Barragan). Grandchildren: Joshua Penn, Candace Penn, and Hazel Gorbett. Brothers: Glen Justus, Tony Justus, John Justus, Paul Justus and sisters: Janice Belcher, Bonnie Carter, Judy Yates and many nieces and nephews.
George was preceded in death by his parents Granville and Hazel Justus, brother Ezra Justus, and sisters Patricia Deel, and Goldie Belcher.
In lieu of flowers, George’s family requests that donations be made to Forks First Baptist Church in his honor. There will be a service held there on Friday, May 3 at 1:00 pm with a potluck to follow.
