John Strange

Dr. John Nelson Strange, Jr. passed away October 29, 2021, at Margaret Pardee Hospital in Hendersonville, NC. He was born in Vicksburg, MS on August 24, 1952, to the late John and Marie Strange.

He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Karen; daughters, Anna Grace of Asheville, NC and Emily of Columbia, SC; sons, Ethan (Carlie) of Greenville, SC and Isaac (Jessica) of Asheville, NC; grandson, Micah Christopher Strange of Greenville, SC; sister, Janet Hammons (Mike) of St. Augustine, Fla; three nieces; two nephews and four great-nieces.

John graduated from H.V. Cooper High School in 1970. He received his BS in Pre-Med from Mississippi State University in 1973 and received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine in 1977. He married his wife Karen Giles Strange on August 4, 1984.

After serving as a medical missionary in Bangalore, India between his junior and senior years of medical school, John met Dr. Vernon Jeffords, a surgeon from Spartanburg, SC. Through his affiliation with Dr. Jeffords, John was accepted into the residency program at Spartanburg General Hospital in Spartanburg, SC. He completed his surgical residency in 1982, followed by a teaching fellowship in 1983. He then began his private surgical practice at Hodge Surgical Clinic in Spartanburg. In 1983, he met Karen after church one evening, and they were married in Spartanburg the following year. In 1986, he and Karen moved to Hendersonville, NC, where he joined Hendersonville Surgical Associates. He worked there for 15 years before health issues necessitated that his career be rerouted. He taught at several colleges in the biology departments and completed his teaching career as a professor at North Greenville University, where he also served as the campus physician. He completed his medical career as an urgent care physician and retired in 2017.

John participated in many committees throughout his career in medicine and in his personal life. None, however, compared to the role that he felt was most important as a husband and father. Around the Thanksgiving table in 2020, he centered the conversation on the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. He turned our hearts to the finished work of Christ on the cross for all our sin. He told everyone present that he wanted them to “be there” in heaven with him through faith in Jesus.

Burial will be at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens in Spartanburg, SC at 11:00am on Friday, November 5, 2021. Visitation will be held at First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, NC on Saturday, November 6, 2021 from 10:00 am to 11:00 am.  A Celebration of Life service will be held at 11:00am on November 6, 2021, at First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, NC with Rev. Steve Scoggins officiating.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Samaritan’s Purse, Attention: World Medical Mission, P.O. Box 3000, Boone, NC 28607 or to the Hendersonville Symphony Youth Orchestra to provide tuition assistance.  For checks, please have them made out to HSO with "Karen Strange HSYO donation" in the notes line to acknowledge your donation. Checks can be mailed to: Hendersonville Symphony Orchestra, Inc. P.O. BOX 1811, Hendersonville, NC 28793.