Joseph Francis Dixon

Joseph Francis Dixon “He is a Saint.” At least that’s what his priests and friends called him. To his six kids, he was “Daddy”, and to his 12 grandchildren he was “Pop-Pop”. He was called “Jody” by his loving wife, Nancy Ann Dixon, who preceded him to Heaven by only a year and four months. He was called “Uncle Jody” by what seems like hundreds of nieces, nephews and cousins. And the rally calls of “Mr. D.!” by the grown friends of his children and patrons as they raised a cold beer upon his entrance to St. George’s Brewing Company or Gus’s. He even received hugs and shouts of “Hello Mr. Dixon!” From the Rite-Aid employees every time he walked in the door. Wherever and whatever he was called…he always came and everyone was happier when he arrived. Whether it was to fix a car, rewire something electrical, cook and serve at Church, share his vast knowledge of price comparisons between stores, say the blessing at a celebration and every meal or just sit with you quietly because he knew you needed it. Being called was the foundation of his life and he did his best to live that Faith in every moment. Joseph Francis Dixon, 89, was called to eternal life on August 26, 2020, where for the past three months, while his family cared for him, he was greeted by Tommy saying, “I love you Daddy. I am so glad you are here with us. This is where you are supposed to be.” Joseph Dixon was born on May 20, 1931 in Portsmouth, VA to J. Franklin and Lillian Query Dixon. He was the youngest of 5 children, and despite the hardships of this era, Jody had a happy childhood growing up with his remaining older siblings, Anne (Brown), Bobby and his cousin, Norman Query, who came to live with them at a young age. Joseph Dixon graduated from St. Paul’s Catholic High School and attended the Apprentice School at NACA. He worked for 40 years as an Electrical Engineering Technician at NASA on one of the most successful rocket launch programs. The Scout Project took him to Africa, Italy, England, Germany, Wallops Island and many other locations. Upon retirement, he worked for Lockheed-Martin, and as an independent electrician. He served 13 years as a cook in the National Guard, which gave him the training and love of cooking for his large family. In his 20’s, Jody built a sailboat with his friend, “Pookie” (Grayson Williams) using only hand tools. Their escapades and stories of sailing on bodies of water surrounding Norfolk and Portsmouth, camping on sandy shores while they avoided bad weather and “sitting in the shade eating moon pies and drinking RC colas” are some of his happiest memories on the water. His love of the water, sailing and the ocean transferred over to annual family beach weeks in Southern Shores and eventually to cruising with the love of his life, Nancy. After retirement, they started cruising on the Queen Elizabeth II (which they both admitted was still their favorite boat) and continued cruising for many years through the Caribbean, South America and a Trans-Atlantic crossing. Joseph Dixon was best known for taking care of everyone. “He was an amazing cook and always made sure everyone was settled and had everything they needed. We had to force him to sit down and rest.” Mornings were filled with the sound of him whistling, working in the kitchen and the smell of eggs and bacon. There was always enough food for everyone no matter how many people arrived for a meal. You could count on him to say the blessing, and he made sure to include everyone, even the infamous “in-laws and out-laws” blessing. His love for others was abundant. He gave his time, his treasures and his talents unselfishly. He may have been “called” by many names, but it was his calling to devote his life to take care of others by giving his love and sharing his faith in all he did that confirms a life well lived. “Do you want me to end the call?” He would say. “Yes…Daddy, Pop-Pop, Joseph, Jody, Joe, Mr. D…its okay to end the call.” You fought the good fight. You finished the race. You kept the faith, and we are better for having you and your blessings as a foundation in our lives. Eternal rest grant unto Joseph, O Lord, and Let perpetual light shine upon him. May the souls of the faithful departed, Through the mercy of God, rest in peace. A Mass of the Resurrection will be held at Immaculate Conception Church, Friday, September 25, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. Due to COVID-19 Diocesan guidelines attendance is limited to family signed up in advance. You may view the Mass on Facebook Live from Tom Dixon’s Facebook page.” Donations may be made to Immaculate Conception Church (ICC)-Tree Fund Program in partnership with African Parishes Memories: “I loved how he cared for Mama/Nana and made sure she had everything she wanted. He would never say anything against her and always supported her no matter what.” What an amazing example he set for all of us. His sense of humor was one of a kind. “I will miss the joy he got out of fart noises and watching Nacho Libre.” He got a kick out of making people smile or laugh even at his own expense. “He disliked sweet tarts. So we always tried to give Daddy a sweet tart. We would bring him a piece of candy and ask him to try it. He would always ask, “This isn’t a sweet tart is it?” and we would say (trying not to smile), “No. It’s not a sweet tart. We wouldn’t do that to you!” He would pop it in his mouth every time! Then he would start gagging and yelling and telling us we were terrible to him. Everyone watching and knowing would fall out laughing. He would just smile and give us a wink. “Pop-Pop used to threaten us grandkids with the Duck fly swatter if we were misbehaving. It would hang on the wall of the kitchen and constantly remind us to be good. He would point at it and warn us that it was always within reach. He would smack it on his hand and look at us, but he usually started smiling. We don’t think he ever used it on any of us.” “Whenever Sarah and I came to visit, I both loved and slightly felt bad for Pop-Pop because he would do everything for us while we talked. He would get up and go in the kitchen and start whistling and then would bring us cookies. If I asked if he needed help, Nana would say, “He likes doing this stuff and waiting on us! Just let him do it.” And then she would say, “Jody! We need some more cookies in here!” “He didn’t talk as much as Nana. I loved how he would smile and wink at you while Nana was yapping away.” “I will miss the smell of Nana & Pop-Pop’s home and the feel of safety, family, happiness and contentment.” “Feeling proud I was his “piggie”, the nickname he had for Gail and I. Due to us being little, red-headed and perhaps a joke referencing when Mama nursed both of us at the same time.” “Random Saturday mornings Daddy would arrive by my bed with breakfast on a tray. Two fried eggs, bacon, toast and juice. He taught me how to sop the eggs up with my toast; but told me not to do that in public.” “Daddy was a great father. But he was also a great son to Baby Grandmother” “One of the first memories I have is holding Daddy’s hand at St. Vincent’s Church, leaning against his tan arms and admiring his cool elephant hair bracelet he wore from Kenya.” “He used to make us hold the flashlight, or hold the little flippy thing open on the engine while he worked on the cars. He would make us sit in the driver’s seat and turn the key on and off until he could troubleshoot from under the hood.” “Daddy used to wear striped “train engineer” overalls. One time it was so hot outside, he came out of the garage and had cut off his overalls into shorts using pruning shears. “ “He used to wear a white cloth diaper on his head while he cut the grass so the sweat wouldn’t get in his eyes.” “I love you Daddy and I will forever be grateful for all you gave us.” Sayings: * “It’s time to go to “Lilly White’s” party!” he would say this when it was time to go to bed. * “Home da’gin!” he would say this every time he pulled into the driveway. * “Give me a wiss-kissy.” When he would kiss us goodnight.