- Date Of Birth: March 8, 1925
- Date Of Death: December 13, 2013
- State: Georgia
John W. Bland, Jr. of Conyers, Georgia passed away on December 13, 2013, after a brief illness in Greenville, Georgia. John was born March 8, 1925, in Statesboro, Georgia to the late john Wooten Bland, Sr., and Ethel McDougal Bland. He grew up in Forsyth, Georgia, where he played football for Mary Persons High School from 1939 to 1941.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Joyce Moncrief Bland, son Deil Clayton Bland, and sister, Kathryne Bland McSwain.
He is survived by his daughter Lauren Bland Jones of Newnan, Georgia; grandson James D. “Bo” Huddleston, (Anna), great-granddaughters Ashley, Sydney, and Verity, all of Virginia Beach, Virginia; sister-in-law, Skippi Moncrief Posey, (Don), of Albany, Georgia; brother-in-law, David Moncrief, (Linda), of Leesburg, Georgia; nieces and nephews. John attended the University of Georgia and in 1949, graduated from Woodrow Wilson School of Law in Atlanta.
He practiced law in Marietta, Atlanta and Decatur from 1949 until his retirement in 2002. However, he was first and foremost a United States Marine. Joining the Marine Corps in 1942 at the age of 17, he served in WWII until August 1944. He saw action in the 4th Marines Division, 24th Infantry in the Asia -Pacific theatre, taking part in the capture of Roi-Namur and Saipan. He was a member of the Georgia Association of Marine Corps Lawyers, the Marine Corps League, the American Legion, and VFW.
