[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 207 (Tuesday, December 8, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1112]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE LIFE OF JUSTUS MURRAY AMMONS

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                          HON. GEORGE HOLDING

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 8, 2020

  Mr. HOLDING. Madam Speaker, I rise today to take pause and reflect on 
the life of Justus Murray Ammons.
  Jud Ammons grew up on a farm in Western North Carolina, where 
sharecropping and plowing gardens shaped what he called his ``country 
boy'' work ethic. At N.C. State, he dabbled in his first 
entrepreneurial pursuits, including selling books, starting a laundry 
pickup business and working as an engineer for the State of North 
Carolina, all on top of college classes. He also met his wife, JoEllen 
and they were married in 1957 in Monroe, North Carolina.
  Madam Speaker, Jud and JoEllen spent their early married years 
traveling the world while Jud served in the U.S. Air Force and then 
worked as department head with CP&L. In the mid-1960s, the Ammons 
settled in Raleigh, North Carolina where Jud founded Ammons 
Construction Company. As a real estate developer, Jud built, owned and 
operated major subdivisions, day care facilities, golf course 
communities, industrial parks, retirement communities and shopping 
centers from the mountains to the coast. He sincerely cared about what 
he was doing and about the people he was building for, no matter the 
project.
  Jud was a savvy businessman, although he claimed it was ``common 
sense.'' Encouraged by seniors in his church Jud developed Springmoor 
Retirement Community in North Raleigh. The community is the cornerstone 
of Greystone and pioneered the concept of a planned urban development 
incorporating amenities that allow residents to live, work, play, 
worship and go to school in a cohesive community. In 2000, he wrote a 
book named for his life motto, ``Don't Wish You Had, Be Glad You Did.''
  Decades ago, Jud coached basketball, soccer and football; more 
recently, he kept a list of grandchildren's sports and activities 
schedules in his back pocket, filling nights and weekends to the brim 
to make it to as many games, recitals and performances as possible.
  Always driven by the desire to meet the needs of the people of 
Raleigh, Jud served in leadership on the Wake County Planning 
Commission, Raleigh Greenway Commission, Raleigh City Task Force and 
Raleigh Bicentennial Commission. He was president and board member of 
the Raleigh-Wake County Home Builders Association and director of the 
National Association of Home Builders. In 2011, he was inducted into 
the Raleigh Hall of Fame. He and JoEllen helped found Greystone Baptist 
Church, where he served as deacon, Sunday School teacher and trustee. 
He served on several legislative study commissions, as a member of the 
Raleigh volunteer fire department and as a trustee of Mars Hill College 
in his hometown. Jud also loved raising champion beagles and was 
inducted into the Brace Beagling Hall of Fame.
  Jud was quick to tell a joke and a story, usually using his own 
dictionary of ``Jud-isms.'' A respected developer and businessman, he 
believed in dreaming big, working hard, and taking risks. But most of 
all, he loved God and his family, including his late wife, JoEllen, 
their four children and their 13 grandchildren.
  Sadly, Madam Speaker, Jud Ammons passed away this year on October 18, 
2020. He was 85 years old. He will be missed by his friends, neighbors, 
family, and the entire community.

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