John Sinclair Huffman died Saturday, November 24 at his home in Conyers, GA, at the age of 70, following a four-year battle with brain cancer. Near the end of his life, John said he knew the cancer would "eventually win," but John didn't lose battles - and he certainly didn't quit. As John put it, after having outlived all the odds and driven his team of doctors crazy with his own medical opinions: "I'm ready whenever He decides it's time." John was born on a mountaintop near Hiltons, Va., to Clyde and Mae Huffman in a two-room log cabin. After having lost his mother as a teenager, John enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967. He would spend the next year in Vietnam as a communications specialist in the second battalion, 39th infantry, ninth division of the U.S. Army. While there, he was injured when a mortar landed nearby, striking him with shrapnel. Of course, John had no patience for the paperwork to be filed at the time for him to receive a Purple Heart, so one was not awarded. But he didn't need the medal to prove his courage. Upon returning from Vietnam, he accepted a job with AT&T in 1970 and received his bachelor's degree from Georgia State University in 1990, attending school in the evenings while maintaining his full-time job. His distinguished 45-year career with AT&T included receiving the company's Vail Award, which recognizes employees' heroic acts; being named an AT&T Fellow - the only outside plant employee in the company's history to achieve this designation; and being granted 105 patents primarily related to his innovations in the fiber optic industry. He was also one of the original patent holders of the AT&T fiber-sensing technology - his proudest career accomplishment - which is currently employed by the U.S. military. With his brilliant mind and tireless work ethic, he may well have never retired, but his 2014 glioblastoma diagnosis eventually forced him to leave a job for which he had so much passion in 2015. He is survived by his loving wife of 18 years, Patricia Boggs Huffman; children, Joshua (Akemi) Huffman and Jennifer (Brian) Harper; stepchildren, Katie (David) Humphrey and Kellie (Joseph) Martin; grandchildren, Zooey Harper, Hadley Harper, and Raiden Huffman; step-grandchildren, Kaylee Humphrey, Deacon Humphrey, and Olivia Martin; sisters, Josephine Cooper, Suzy (Bo) Deaton, Peggy (Terry) McGee, and Shirley Harvey; and brothers, James Huffman and Fred Huffman. Visitation will be held at Henry Funeral Home in Lithonia, GA on Saturday, December 1 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., followed by an outdoor memorial service at 2 p.m. at the Walk of Heroes Veterans War Memorial in Conyers, GA, where John was a sustaining member since 2013. In lieu of flowers, donations in John's memory can be made to www.walkofheroes.org. Donations will be put towards the replacement of John's favorite Army statue.