John David Papenburg

John David Papenburg, 67, of Decatur, Alabama passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home on December 14, 2024. Services will be held at Annunciation of the Lord Catholic Church on Friday, December 20, 2024. A recitation of the Rosary will begin at 10:30 AM followed by visitation at 11:00 AM and a Funeral Mass at noon. He will be laid to rest at Roselawn Cemetery.

John is survived by two sons, Colin Papenburg and Charles Papenburg, and one daughter, Grace Papenburg, two brothers, Fred G. Papenburg, Jr. (Dianne) and James Papenburg, and one sister, Mary Papenburg Carraway as well as several nieces and nephews.

Born May 1, 1957 to the late Frederick Guhl Papenburg, Sr. and Edith Nell Laubenthal Papenburg, John spent the majority of his life in Decatur. He attended school at St Ann's and graduated from Decatur High School in 1975. He furthered his education as an insurance agent before joining his father's company, Insurance Market in Huntsville, AL. John was quite a successful agent for 40 years, smoothly transitioning to ownership of the agency when his father retired. He was honored by his fellow agents when elected to serve as president of the Huntsville Independent Insurance Agents Association for a period of time.

John was a lifelong member of the Catholic church, first at Saint Ann's in downtown Decatur then at Annunciation of the Lord when the church moved to Spring Avenue. An inspiration to so many, he was a Christian who lived his faith and was a true soldier of Christ. He played a very active role in both leadership and hands-on positions in various capacities throughout the parish including the Prison Ministry and especially the St. Vincent de Paul ministry which provides tangible aid to those in need of food, clothing, shelter and healing in our community who have nowhere else to turn for help.

John was always busy doing something and that something often had no direct benefit to himself. He loved to help others, always looking for opportunities in both unsuspected and surprising ways, especially if it involved yard work for others.

He was an avid Alabama, "Roll Tide!" football fan and always enjoyed the games and fanfare with both family and friends. Among his top favorite things to do was spending time with others, especially family. He loved his children greatly and treasured every opportunity for family fun, vacations and bonding experiences. The many years the extended Papenburg family spent a week together at the beach testifies to how John longed to be with those he loved. And those are memories that will abide in our hearts forever.

In Lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: St. Vincent de Paul Society c/o Annunciation of the Lord Catholic Church 3910 Spring Ave. SW Decatur, AL 35603