Joel Everett Bradford

Joel Everett Bradford, 59, died on October 3, 2016 in Garner, North Carolina. Joel was born in Manjama, Sierra Leone on August 6, 1957 to Lester and Winifred Bradford. He grew up in Manjama, Sierra Leone; Bogalusa and Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Mount Vernon, Washington, and graduated from Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut in 1980. He led a varied career as an electrical engineer, daycare provider, and physics teacher in Natick, Massachusetts, where he lived for more than 30 years.

Joel was fiercely devoted to his family, redirecting his career to focus on raising his two sons. Throughout his life, he often defied convention, unabashedly forging his own path guided by his intellect and ideals. He was a passionate educator who motivated and inspired thousands of students in his decades of teaching. His uniquely adventurous spirit led him around the country and around the world, from kiteboarding the North Carolina coast to climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. In his retirement, he led a free and spontaneous life of traveling, hiking, motorcycling, and, above all, enjoying his time as a beloved uncle, father, and grandfather.

He is survived by two sons, Everett and his wife Lauren of Apex, North Carolina, and Luke of Cambridge, Massachusetts; granddaughter Brooke; parents Lester and Winifred of Mount Vernon, Washington; brother Ethan Bradford and his wife Kelly of Seattle, Washington; sisters Dorcas Bouey of Big Lake, Washington, Julie Guyette and her husband Harry of Fresno, California, and Melinda Grace Skidmore of Maple Valley, Washington; nephews Caleb Bouey and his wife Meredith, Alex Bouey, Ezra Bradford, Clinton Bradford and his wife Cara, Alden Bradford, and Jeremy Guyette; nieces Laurestine Bradford, Natalie Kuffel and her husband Mikhail, Emily Guyette, and Hannah Novotny.

A funeral service will be held at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, October 7, 2016 at Apex Funeral Home in Apex, NC. The family will receive friends an hour prior to the service, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in Joel's name may be made to Heifer International.