Johnny Wayne Browning, 68, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on Sunday, March 16, 2025, after a long battle with cancer, surrounded by his family. He was born Oct. 1, 1956, to the late John and Bida Silver Browning. In addition to his parents, he is preceded in death by his brothers, Jacob Lee (Rooster), Roger and Jimmy Browning.
Johnny is survived by his wife of 33 years Karen F. Browning; two sons, Chancey Browning of Maggie Valley and Blake French of Cherokee; two daughters, Crissy Lambert (Bear) of Whittier and Colette Lindsey of Cherokee; three granddaughters, Kendra Hernandez (Daniel) of Hendersonville, Alyssia Lindsey of Asheville, and Brooke Rios (Hilda) of Waynesville; three grandsons, Hunter, Trace, and Tay Lambert, all of Whittier; four nieces, April Browning (Shaun) of Waynesville, Tammy Styles (David) of Sylva, Deb Browning of Waynesville, and Debrada Browning of Simpsonville, S.C.; one nephew, Tim Browning of Waynesville; 11 great grandchildren; along with several other family and many more friends.
Johnny loved the Lord most of all, and all his family and friends. Johnny was the kind of person that would do anything he could to help anyone. He loved to attend church at Old Antioch Baptist Church in Cherokee. He worked for 20 years at Anton Chevrolet as a paint and body technician. He also worked for HTT repairing boilers for years.
A visitation will be held at Waynesville Christian Fellowship Church at 1115 Dellwood Rd., Waynesville, N.C. Thursday, March 20 at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Funeral services will be held Friday, March 21 at 1 p.m. at Old Antioch Baptist Church 2868 Wrights Creek Rd. in Cherokee. Burial will follow at the French Swayney Cemetery on Big Cove Loop Rd.
Pallbearers include Hunter, Trace and Tay Lambert, Daniel Hernandez, Daniel Carr, and Shaun McGowan. Honorary pallbearers will be William (Porky) Carr, Kenny Dillard, and Blake French.
Smoky Mountain Cremations and Funeral Service of Maggie Valley is caring for the family, and the online register is available at www.smokymountaincremations.com.