John Henry Decker, Jr.

John Henry Decker Jr., of San Angelo, passed away on May 17, 2018 at the age of 68. He was born on May 15, 1950 in Hobbs, New Mexico, to parents John Decker Sr. and Madeline Johnson. He was a 1968 graduate of San Angelo Central High School. John was a veteran of the U.S. Navy and served during the Vietnam era, from 1968 to 1972. He attended the University of California at San Diego where he met the mother of his children, Daphne Abbott, and he graduated in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts in Drama. John fathered two beautiful daughters who inherited his big, brown eyes. He enjoyed cooking, photography and filmmaking, creative writing, and playing the guitar and banjo. He married his high school sweetheart, Melanie McCullough, on December 23, 2012 in Leesburg, Virginia. They enjoyed a happy life together in San Angelo, Texas with their dogs Wilson and Jenny. John's humor and strength will endure in our hearts forever. He will be deeply missed. John is survived by his beloved wife, Melanie Decker; daughter, Lillian Jessica Atwood, and her husband, James; daughter, Hope Elizabeth Decker, and her fiancee, Devin Rider; grandson, Henry Atwood; granddaughter, Ellie Atwood; sister, Christa Martin, and her husband Carl; brother, David Ortel; sister, Tammy Hanson; step-daughter, Jacy Epperson; step-daughter, Sara Kimpton, and her husband, Colin; step-grandchildren, Bethanie Epperson, Brady Kimpton, and Max Kimpton; niece, Amy Harris; and many other nieces, nephews, cousins, and more.