Jule McMichael, Jr.

Jule McMichael, Jr., “the man with the BIG SMILE”, 75, was received into the loving arms of his Lord and Savior on January 30, 2019 surrounded by family at the Rockingham County Hospice House. There will be a private burial prior to his service. A celebration of his life will be held at 2:00 PM, Friday, February 1, 2019 at First Presbyterian Church in Reidsville. After the service, the family will receive friends in the fellowship hall of the church. Born July 20, 1943 in Knoxville, TN, Jule was the son of the late Jule McMichael, Sr. and Mary Wallace McMichael. He graduated from Reidsville Sr. High School in 1961, he received his undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1965 and then he graduated with a Master of Business Administration, also from UNC in 1970. He worked for IBM and later Trax, Inc. Jule loved God first and had a deep abiding love for his family. He adored his grandchildren and always found a way to make their time together fun. Jule loved the Carolina Tar Heels, boats, convertibles (especially Corvettes), being “in and around” water, fishing, Reidsville football, Short Sugar’s and ALL adventures, including telling the details over and over. His “SMILE” was his exclamation point on every story! Jule’s zest for life kept people entertained and his positive attitude was the foundation for his endless mentoring relationships and his message of encouragement always helped others discover and believe in their dreams. Later in life, Jule loved to “run away from home” in the winter to live on his boat in the warm Caribbean and later to Enchanted Shores Community in Naples, FL. Some of his favorite sayings were “When you were young, did you ever dream you would be having this much fun?”, “Get up, you’re killing the grass!”, “You’re tough as woodpecker lips”, and the list goes on. He received a heart transplant in 2012 and would encourage everyone to become an organ donor. Finally, if Jule could give you one last message, he would say “Have fun every day!” Married for 53 years, Jule is survived by the love of his life, Barbara Lauder McMichael of the home: sons, Jule McMichael, III and wife, Leigh and Penn McMichael and wife, Kimberly all of Reidsville; grandchildren, Kaleigh, Lawson, Maddie, Dalton, Tess and Reagan; his “brother”, Doug Starr; niece, Rachel Starr; sisters-in-law, Jo Anne Lauder and Shirley McMichael; nephews, Patrick and Ryan McMichael. Along with his parents, he was also preceded in death by his brothers, Howard McMichael and Pell McMichael. Thank you LORD that your goodness and mercy have followed Jule all the days of his life and he is now dwelling in the house of The Lord forever. God is Good -- all the time! In lieu of flowers, donations be made to Reidsville Christian Church Building Fund, 2020 South Park Drive, Reidsville, NC 27320. Condolences may be made to the family at www.wilkersonfuneral.com.