John Thomas Abbott died on Feb. 17 in Pensacola, but his memory lives on in the hearts of his family and friends, the town of Perdido Beach and fire fighters across the southern Alabama region.

“You can’t believe the hole this puts in Perdido Beach,” Maureen Higgins, a family friend, said. “There’s a void that can’t be filled.”

Abbott, or “J.T.,” as many friends and family called him, spent 28 years as a volunteer fire fighter in Perdido Beach, serving as chief, president, vice-president and assistant chief of the Perdido Beach Volunteer Fire Department. He also was the vice-president of the Baldwin County Fire Chief Association for three years.

“He was chief of the department for 11 years. I’m chief now and he was serving as my first assistant,” Perdido Beach Fire Chief Ken Wright said. “He handled a lot of stuff for me and made my job a whole lot easier.”

J.T.’s funeral service was held at the Wolfe-Bayview Funeral Home in Foley. Everyone who spoke mentioned how much J.T. helped others and served the community throughout his life, which began in Uriah, Ala. in 1935 and continued in Perdido Beach a year later until he passed away at 76 years old.

“He was there for everybody in the community whether you had a broken water pipe or anything, they knew to call J.T.,” Wright said. “He took care of people’s houses when they were away. The older people that needed their lawns cut, he came and cut them.”

J.T. was a U.S. Air Force veteran in the Korean conflict, and he served in the Philippines, Japan and Guam.

“He went from good to great a long time ago,” John Abbott Jr., one of J.T.’s two sons, said.

“Everyone you meet either affects you in a positive or negative way. (John) was one of those people that when you met him, he affected you in a positive way,” Fred McGee, Perdido Beach fire chaplain, said. “I really loved the man because of who he was and what he was.”

After the service in Foley, an 18-mile procession from the funeral home to Old Baptist Cemetery in Lillian included fire departments from all over southern Alabama, showing how much respect and admiration J.T. had among fellow fire fighters.

“When we had (Hurricane Ivan and Hurricane Katrina) he was there coordinating things between the fire department and the residents and the county. When we had a call, he was usually the first one at the station and the last one to  leave,” Wright said, noting J.T. “always had the coffee ready” for the staff.

The Perdido Beach volunteer Fire Department is down to 15 people, Wright said, which is lower than the average of 20. Wright said the department covers 12 miles and serves around 1,200 full-time residents, and J.T. passing away leaves a huge hole in the process for training new fire fighters and just being a part of the staff.

“He was a mentor,” Wright said. “Usually when we got a new member, if I didn’t give him their orientation, then he did.”

Foley Fire Department Chief Joseph Darby said he and J.T. were related, and Darby didn’t know until J.T. approached him and told him.

“After that, whenever we had a meeting or saw one another, he always had a story to tell me,” Darby said.

J.T. graduated Foley High School in 1952, and he was president of the Perdido Beach property owners association. He was a lifelong member and deacon of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He was active with Boy Scouts programs for more than 40 years.

He is survived by his wife, Anna Abbott; two sons, John Abbott Jr. and Andrew Abbott; a sister, Betty Joyce; two brothers, Robert Cecil Abbott and William Charles Abbott; one grandson, William Thomas Abbott; and two great-grandchildren, Jordyn Abbott and Raeleigh Abbott.