John H. Harris, 82, entered into the presence of his Lord and Savior on Tuesday (June 24, 2025) at Wellsville Manor Care Center following a brief illness.
Mr. Harris was born on February 21, 1943 in Fulton to Ross and Pauline (Mitchell) Harris. He served in the United States Army from 1962-63. On February 29, 1964, at the Fulton Free Methodist Church, he married Sandra L. House, who predeceased him on February 5, 2015.
John was a bi-vocational pastor for over 50 years, serving in many churches wherever the need would present itself. During that time, he also worked as a courier for a mail delivery service as well as delivering patients to their appointments with Oswego Mental Health, a position he held for over 20 years. John also had a keen eye for buying houses, fixing them up and reselling them.
John is survived by five children, Colleen Best of Wellsville, Sherrie (Dean) Hinton of Williamstown, Ky., Star Kilby of Oswego, Faith (Scott) Loran of Cicero and Paul (Louisa) Harris of Palermo; three sisters, Mildred Marlene Coe and Robin Durffy, both of Fulton and Lillian Kyle of Hannibal; one brother, Timothy (Melissa) Harris of Fulton; 16 grandchildren, Austin (Elaina) Hinton, Adam Hinton, Aubra (Derek) Brackeill, Sasha Mitchell, Andrew “AJ” Bardin, Kayla (Eddie) Loran, Alyssa (Zach) Arnold, Mariah (Tanner) Burrows, Cierra Harris, Everest Harris, Aubrey Harris, Luke Harris, Zion Harris, Ezekiel Harris, Rhea Wardhaugh and Katherine Wardhaugh; 10 great grandchildren; and several nieces, nephews and cousins.
In addition to his wife of 50 years, he was predeceased by a daughter, Lorraine Wardhaugh; three brothers, Ross Harris, Jr., David Harris and Paul Harris; and two brothers-in-law, Robert Coe and Allen Kyle.
John enjoyed working and devoted himself to the task before him. He loved building things with his hands and he could fix just about anything. In his spare time, he liked to doodle cartoon characters.
John had a love for his Lord and that spilled over into his love for people. He invested his life spreading the good news of the gospel through his pastoring and visitation ministry. He thrilled children with his “Harry the Puppet” stories with many of them calling him “Grandpa”. He was an avid reader of his Bible and for pleasure enjoyed a good love inspired book.
John was a devoted family man. He loved random car rides with his wife; touring the back roads looking for adventure in the countryside. His children describe him as inspirational, caring, loving and gentle. He was all that and much more. He was also a patriotic American and loved his country.
There will be a time of visitation on Friday (June 27) from 5-7:30 p.m. at Baker-Swan Funeral Home in Andover. Immediately following the visitation, John’s funeral will take place at 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home with Pastor Daryl Ordiway of the Andover First Baptist Church, officiating. A grave side service with full military honors will be held on Monday at 1:00 p.m. at the Fairdale Rural Cemetery in Hannibal where he will be laid to rest beside his wife. Online condolences may be offered at www.baker-swan.com.
Memorial contributions in John’s name may be made to Jones Memorial Infusion Clinic, C/O Jones Memorial Hospital, 191 N. Main Street, Wellsville, NY 14895. © 2024 Baker-Swan Funeral Home.
