John David Briggs, age 90, of Bena, passed away on the night of February 18, 2025 in his home, surrounded by family and loved ones. He was born on August 12, 1934 in Shell Creek, Tennessee, to the late Dave and Flossie Briggs. He moved to Troy, Idaho, in 1939 and then to Fossil, Oregon, in 1941. In 1942, he moved back to Elizabethton, Tennessee. He later moved to Gloucester County, Virginia, in 1944, where he graduated from Gloucester High School in 1954 and Virginia Community University in 1960 with a Business Education degree. He obtained his Master’s in Education in 1966 and his postgraduate degree in 1984. During the Berlin Crisis, JD served his country in the U.S. Air Force in Chemont, France. He taught accounting and business education at Hermitage and Douglas Freeman High Schools in Richmond, Va., and then he returned to Gloucester in 1969 as Principal of Gloucester Intermediate School. He became Principal of Gloucester High School in 1971, and was a member of the Gloucester Point Rotary Club during his tenure there. In 1976, he became the principal of Achilles Elementary School, and in 1986, he became the Petsworth Elementary School principal. In 1993, he became Rawls Byrd Elementary School’s principal and retired in 2003. He was a devout member of First Presbyterian Church in Gloucester, where he taught Sunday school, served as Sunday School Superintendent, and was elected as Deacon and Elder there. He was Chairman of the Peanut District and later the York River’s District of the Virginia High School League. He was preceded in death by his wife of 52 years, Susan Wiatt Briggs; an infant daughter, Betty Boyd Briggs; three brothers, Robert Taylor Briggs, Carl Briggs, Harrel Richard Briggs, and one sister, Mary Hughes. He is survived by his son, John Wiatt Briggs and his wife Rebekah Hope Briggs and their children, Dylan Sean Richards and Brody Edward Sadler. He is also survived by his daughter, Susan Briggs Willard and her husband Scott Arthur Willard and their children, Claire Helen Willard and Connor Dawson Willard; and Carolyn Hoover, his significant other and his beloved partner over the last six years. The funeral service, conducted by Pastor Jesse Hill and Pastor Doug Nagel, will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, February 28, 2025, in Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, Main Street, Gloucester. The committal will be private. The family will receive friends before the service from 9-9:45 a.m. JD had an enormous heart and loved helping people, especially those in need. His favorite pastimes were playing tennis and swimming in the pool. His family has requested memorial contributions be made to the JD Briggs Fund by the Samaritan Group, 6494 Main Street, Gloucester, Va. 23061. The fund provides clothing, medical and school supplies, and field trip fees for children with financial needs in the Gloucester Public School System.
Services under the direction of Hogg Funeral Home.