Bill Joe Burnette

On the beautiful fall morning of Friday, October 14, Billy Joe Burnette, 63, took one last breath and passed on from this world. He is no longer weak, weary or hurting. He was the type of man that never met a stranger and many will miss him very much. He was a good man that lived life well. You could see the love in his eyes and see that he recognized what really was important in this world, his family and friends. A native of Haywood County he was the son of the late Fred Newton and Helen Crawford Burnette. Mr. Burnette was the owner of an auto parts store in Brevard. Bill loved hot rods and drag racing. He was active for more than 40 years in IHRA and NHRA winning the Fall Nationals at Bristol. Bill was very competitive and was know as “Smoker” among his rival racers. He is survived by his loving wife, Wanda Burnette; daughters, Sabrena Alexander and her husband, Alex, and Bill’s only grandchild, Shelby, of Fountain Inn, SC and Sharon Hamilton of Asheville; sister, Betty Burnette Revis of Asheville, her son, Jeffrey Howard Medford and his children, Alex, Maris and Emily. Also surviving are brothers, Howard Burnette and his wife, Shirley, of Clyde and Ralph Conner and his wife Lovada of Fletcher, a good number of nieces and nephews and many beloved friends. The family will have a gathering of friends from 6:30 until 8:00 pm, Monday, October 17 at Groce Funeral Home at Lake Julian. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made the charity of one’s choice. God speed Bill from all your loved ones.