John Preston Walker

John Preston Walker

March 22, 1938 - July 15, 2017

Rougemont, North Carolina

John Preston Walker died suddenly at his home in Rougemont, NC, Saturday morning, July 15, 2017.

Preston or Frog to childhood friends and family, Papa and Daddy to children, John lived his last day like he'd lived most days before — greeting customers, fixing things, and finding good reasons to love his community and the people in it.

Born March 22, 1938 in Longhurst, John left his hometown of Roxboro after high school and moved to Washington, DC, where he earned his refrigeration certification at University of Maryland. For most of the 1960s, he worked for Sears Roebuck as an appliance repairman, moonlighting on Mt. Vernon Line tour boats. With a decade's experience under his belt, he returned to Rougemont, and in 1970 started his business, Aircon Refrigeration, that he'd lead for the rest of his life.

Over the past 47 years, John has raised and grown his family, collected friends, and built his business. In recent years, John's passion and expertise led much of his work toward restoring vintage appliances, both for collectors across the country and for the film industry, and earned him the nickname the Refrigerator Man.

John was predeceased by his parents Geneva Flynn Walker and Archie S Walker; his sister, Jean Walker Raines; his brother, Bernard W. "Skip" Walker; and beloved dog, Maggie.

John is survived by his wife, Karen Kayne Federline Walker of Rougemont and his children: Angel Douglas of Washington, DC; Laura Lee Fink of Durham; Janet Baker of Charleston, SC; Kathleen Child of Frederick, MD; John P Walker Jr of Chapel Hill; Tina A Walker of Rougemont; Michael Federline of Dover, DE; Nancy Sanseverino of Raleigh and Christina Sanseverino of Bremerton, WA.

John is beloved and survived by many grandchildren: Memet Walker of New York, NY; Jessica Wesley of Roxboro; Geordie Forney, Josiah and James Baker of Charleston, SC; Grover Mewborn of Dublin, Ireland; Edward Mewborn of Yantai, China; Grover Mewborn of Washington, DC; Campbell and Gray Isom of Chapel Hill; Lorelei, Robert and Molly Ann Federline of Dover, DE; Jasmine, Abbey and Mila Tomasetti of Bremerton, WA; AJ and Ayden Child of Frederick, MD; Breanna and Zozzie Stokes of Durham, one great-grandchild, Marcus Preston Wesley of Roxboro; and two nieces, Jennifer Raines of Williamsburg, VA and Teresa Raines Bassett of Hampton, VA.

A celebration of John's life will be held Saturday, July 29, 2017, at New Bethel United Methodist Church, 9022 New Bethel Road, Rougemont, NC, at 2PM, with visitation and potluck in the fellowship hall following the service. Interment of ashes in the family cemetery will be at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Rougemont UMC Food Pantry, PO Box 261, Rougemont, NC 27572, or Moriah Volunteer Fire & Rescue, 6005 Mt. Harmony Church Rd, Rougemont NC 27572. Published in HeraldSun on July 23, 2017