Birth date: Sep 4, 1975 Death date: Dec 9, 2021
On Dec 9th of 2021 Lloyd Joe Free Jr. (Joey), loving son, brother, uncle, nephew and cousin passed away unexpectedly at his home at the age of 46. Born on September 4th, 1975 in Longview, TX, Joey was an alumni of White Oak High S Read Obituary
Joey was a dear friend who was caring, curious and clever. He was not one for banality and always kept me honest. I really appreciate how much effort he put into maintaining contact even as life made such efforts more difficult. I will miss the stream-of-conscious prose and the loyal, kind-hearted man who wrote it.
I knew Joey for about a year. The story of our meeting is somewhat humorous and I won't share the whole thing here, but we instantly connected over sports. That connection grew into a true friendship and I've probably spoken to Joey weekly on average over the last year. He was a true friend and his sincere care for me and my family was evident. Joey will be missed.
I will always remember hanging out at grandma and grandpa's house during Thanksgiving and Christmas. We used to jump on the bed in the back room and could hear grandma yelling at us to stop jumping on the bed. My favorite saying was "I'm fixing to come back there!" We'd all stop jumping and sit quietly while laughing. Chad, Tara, Joey and I made up some great games and occasionally an interesting skit. We'd play football. Joey took the game seriously while still having fun. He was smart and funny. We loved to argue. Those holidays are great memories and I will miss Joey. I wish the whole family love. I will be thinking of you all. Much love.
Joey wasn't always the easiest person to be friends with, but he was worth the effort. He was generous, fun, and whip-smart. Any time he prefaced a question with "you're a biomedical engineer," I knew I was in for a doozy. And some of my best memories from college were going to debate tournaments with him. We made great partners because we could get on the same wavelength. And he was there in the round where I met my wife. I deeply regret losing touch with him. I miss him terribly.
Joey was one of my favorite friends of Wade's growing up. He was bright, sweet, and polite. A favorite memory is taking him and Wade to a summer camp for gifted kids in Tennessee. They rolled their eyes when Ben and I wanted to stop at the Peabody in Memphis to see the ducks. When the ducks marched in, Wade and Joey forgot to be cool, and were dancing with glee. RIP sweet boy.
Joey was a good an loving young man. As we all do in our life as we also went astray in parts of our life. He is remembered by me as a young man who would go a long way in life an do thing in which we all would be very proud of him an as a part of our family. He will be missed dearly. As my first nephew, he was a wonderful an caring person. I am proud to have had him my nephew (an will always be in my heart).
God speed Joey.
Love you,
Uncle Barney
