John William Gant

March 29, 1919 - January 6, 2018

Mr. John William Gant, age 98, of Pisgah, Alabama, passed away on Saturday, January 6, 2018 at Highlands Medical Center, Scottsboro, Alabama. Born March 29, 1919, in Pisgah, John accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior as a teenager. As a member of the Pisgah Baptist Church, he served in numerous capacities, including as trustee, chairman of the 1967 building committee and member of the pastor search, finance, and building and grounds committees. John was one of 14 members of the Young Men’s Sunday School Class who committed to pay the salary of the first full-time pastor of the church. He also served as a member of the Alabama Baptist State Executive Board and as treasurer, chairman of the audit committee and trustee of the Sand Mountain Baptist Association. During World War II, John served in squadron operations with the 9th Air Force at bases in England, France and Belgium. After being honorably discharged on December 9, 1945, he enrolled at the University of Alabama in March 1946 and graduated in March 1948 with a Bachelor of Science in Commerce and Business Administration with major in accounting. After initially practicing with an accounting firm in Birmingham, John opened his own accounting practice in Scottsboro on January 1, 1950. He became the second Certified Public Accountant in North Alabama in 1952 when the Alabama State Board of Public Accountancy issued certificate no. 239 to him. John’s firm expanded to include offices in Ft. Payne and Albertville, and, at the time of his retirement in 1981 and now, is known as Gant Croft & Associates, P. C. John was a charter member of the Pisgah Civitan Club, in which he served in all elected offices, and a two-term Lt. Governor and chairman of finance of Alabama District North, Civitan International. He was honored as a Fellow of Civitan International. John was instrumental in recruiting to Pisgah the Dover Mills textile manufacturing plant which had a very positive effect on the growth and development of the community. John’s hobbies included flyfishing, quail hunting, shuffleboard and genealogy. John is survived by: 3 Children: John William Gant, Jr. and wife, Schuyler, of Birmingham, Kathryn Virginia Gant Griffith and husband, Dwight, of Pisgah, David Granville Gant and wife, Kristi, of Pisgah; 1 Sister: Bettye Grace Gant Scott of Birmingham, and formerly of Venice, Florida; Grandchildren: John William Gant III, Harrison Lee Gant, Ryan David Griffith and wife, Victoria, Andrew Kyle Griffith and wife, Malorie, Meagan Kathryn Griffith Hale and husband, Matt, Matthew David Gant and wife, Jessica, Kala Sharea Matthews and fiancé, Adam, Zackery Keith Matthews and fiancé, Samantha, Heather Gant Roberts and husband, Koty; and 7 Great Grandchildren. He is preceded in death by: Wife: Virginia White Gant; Parents: William Granville Gant and Lillie Pearl Wheeler Gant; Wife’s Parents: William Frazer White and Cornelia Dell Cox White. The funeral service is Wednesday, January 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. at the Pisgah Baptist Church with Bro. Tommy Turner officiating. Burial will follow in the adjoining cemetery. The family will receive friends at Pisgah Baptist Church on Wednesday from 12:00 noon until the funeral service. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial gifts to the Pisgah Baptist Church, P. O. Box 10, 2259 Co Rd 58, Pisgah, AL 35765 or to another charity. The family expresses gratitude to caregivers Mary Jo and Gilbert Puckett, Geneva Kerby and Oxford Healthcare for their in-home care and assistance.