Harry Melvin Payne, 84, of Winchester, Virginia died Wednesday, November 30, 2016, surrounded by his family.
Mr. Payne was born in 1932 in Danville, Virginia, the son of the late Harry M. and Gertrude R. Payne. He grew up in the Swansonville area near Danville, VA and graduated from Whitmell Farm-Life School in 1949. He graduated from Virginia Tech in 1954 with a B.S in Agronomy and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Air Force. He served on active duty from 1954-57, as an Intelligence Officer, and remained in the Air Force Reserves until 1982 when he retired as a Major. He returned to school at JMU to receive a Master’s Degree in Psychology Counseling and went to work at the Veterans Administration in Martinsburg, WV. He served as a counselor in Winchester for some time and then returned to the VA Center to be the Director of the Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Unit. He retired from the VA Center with more than 20 years of service. Mr. Payne enjoyed landscaping and had a business with his son for a short time. In his younger years, he wanted to be a professional baseball player and enjoyed playing on an intramural softball team until he retired. He played the acoustic guitar in a band during his high school years. Mr. Payne enjoyed traveling, especially the many cross-country trips with his wife, Judy. He was an avid Hokies fan and alumnus. He served on the Edge Hill Recovery Center Board, and the Lord Fairfax House Council on Alcoholism. Mr. Payne greatly enjoyed the relationships he built as a counselor and mentor and felt he could make a positive difference in people’s lives by listening and guiding those who were in need of direction. Above all else, he loved seeing his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Mr. Payne married Judy Guernsey on July 6, 1996 in Clarke County, Virginia.
Surviving with his wife, are his children: daughter, Monique Jacquis of San Francisco, California and her daughter, Marissa J. Sheffield of Winchester, Virginia; daughter, Phyllis M. Cooke (Matthew) of Gainesville, Virginia, and their children: Keegan and Mattie; son, Stephen H. Payne (Elaine) of Martinsburg, West Virginia, and their children: Matthew and Dustin (Cassie), and grandchildren: Nicholas, Liam and Lauren; Harry’s granddaughter: Marissa J. Sheffield (Shane) and their children: Blake and Ryder; Stepdaughter, Kristin Birks of Toronto, Canada; Stepson, Kenneth Birks (Jill) of Toronto, Canada: and their son, Sebastian Birks; two sisters, Peggy Wells (Randolph) of Danville, Virginia and Marie George of Asheville, North Carolina; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A Celebration of Life will be conducted at 2 p.m. on Sunday with Pastor David Witt officiating at Omps Funeral Home, Amherst Chapel.
Memorial contributions in memory of Harry may be made to Lord Fairfax House (Council on Alcoholism Lord Fairfax Community, Inc.) 512 S. Braddock Street, Winchester, Virginia 22601.
Please view obituaries and tribute wall at www.ompsfuneralhome.com