Justin Reid Lawing

Justin Reid Lawing, beloved husband, son, brother, uncle, nephew, grandson, and friend, went home to the arms of his Heavenly Father on August 24, 2024. He was born on May 15, 1984, in Charlotte, North Carolina, to Kevin and Sharon Lawing, and resided in Wilmington, North Carolina, with his wife, Andrea Barilla, whom he had married on May 6, 2023.

Justin was beloved by all who met him. He was a people person. He loved talking with people, encouraging them, praying for them, and doing nice things for them. He worked the membership desk at the Wilmington, NC, YMCA, and he ensured that each person who walked through those doors felt welcomed, listened to, and appreciated. These gifts extended beyond his work into his daily life. Justin felt ministry callings on his life from a young age, volunteering at church and even attending YWAM (Youth With A Mission), and while he never received a seminary degree, God used him each and every day. Justin was not shy about sharing his testimony. After many years of battling, he had reached over three years of sobriety from alcohol and was almost at four when he passed. He credited a huge part of his recovery on the prayers of his family, and he counted it a privilege and his greatest blessing to be a part of such a godly family. Justin was a source of encouragement to those in the battle for recovery, tangibly reaching out via calls and texts and helping with immediate needs, such as arranging housing and doing laundry for men to have clean clothes for their next day of work.

Justin was proud to have been part of the beginnings of Elevation Church in Charlotte and loved to tell the story of how Steven Furtick baptized him. Furtick’s sermons and Elevation worship music were great sources of strength to Justin, and he admired and listened to other pastors as well. In fact, he had many pastor friends. Each morning, Justin sat in his brown leather chair, ate his peanut butter sandwich, and listened to an Our Daily Bread devotional and a sermon. As a child, he and his beloved Pops would put Jesus cards—cards sharing the love of Jesus—all around the campsite where his family spent their summers. He admired Pops and the men in his family greatly, and he strove to be a good Christian man to his wife and to others. Justin loved his wife, Andrea, deeply, and with her, he had found his best friend and soulmate. He never missed kissing her goodbye each morning and always made sure his adopted kitty “son,” a tuxedo cat named Alfred, had his canned food for the day as well as some pets. He also made sure his wife was supplied with a steady stream of chocolate and beautiful flowers over the years.

Justin loved to fish, and many of us called him the Flounder Whisperer for his patience and ability to catch this challenging fish. He had many happy memories learning to fish from his Uncle Ron and fishing with his brothers and cousins. Alfred learned what fresh seafood tasted like from his Daddy, and Daddy would sit in his chair and feed him shrimp and other delicacies his Mama had never fed him before. Another passion of Justin’s was food, preparing it and eating it. He had managed, cooked, and been a server at many restaurants. In fact, many Wilmington locals thought he made the best homemade biscuits in town! He also loved cooking barbecue, steak, and his Mom Mom’s Chicken Bog (among many other things). Justin also enjoyed setting off fireworks each Christmas with his Pops and family at Pop and Mom Mom’s lake house and carried his love for fireworks into his marriage. A trip to Myrtle Beach was never complete without a visit to the State Line Fireworks store. Justin also loved camping and impressed his wife often with his outdoor and survival skills; she will never forget him whittling wood to fix an impressive airplane kite, which they happily flew on Wrightsville Beach on her birthday. He made her laugh when he would exclaim, “I was a Boy Scout, you know!” Justin also loved music, especially worship, 90s, and country music, and he and his wife loved singing together and attending concerts. They also loved to laugh and enjoyed watching comedy. Justin’s absolute most favorite thing was making his wife laugh, and he did. Often.

Justin is survived by his wife, Andrea Barilla; his parents, Kevin and Sharon Lawing; his brother Jason Lawing, wife Desiree, and their two sons, Jacob and Finn; his brother Bryan Lawing and wife Leigh; and other treasured family. He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Reidy and Martha Lawing and Don and Mary Whilden; his uncle Ron Whilden; and aunt Bonny Whilden— all from Charlotte, NC—and his father-in-law, Gene Barilla, from Pittsburgh, PA.

A Visitation for Justin will be held on Friday, September 6, 2024, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. and on Saturday, September 7, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m., followed by a Service celebrating Justin’s life from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Visitations and the Service will be held at Coble Funeral & Cremation Service at Greenlawn Memorial Park, 1155 Shipyard Blvd., Wilmington, North Carolina 28412.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Lawing Family Memorial: https://gofund.me/85d69537

Condolences may be sent to the family at www.coblegreenlawn.com