Mr. Joe Neal Bagwell

February 24, 1942 - October 25, 2020

Mr. Joe Neal Bagwell, age 78, of Commerce passed away on Sunday, October 25, 2020 at Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center following a brief illness. Mr. Bagwell was born in Commerce to the late, Joseph H. and Sallie Mae Whitehead Bagwell. Mr. Bagwell was a member of Maysville Baptist Church and a veteran of the United States Marine Corps. A 1960 graduate of Commerce High School, Mr. Bagwell received a Civil Engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and spent his life building houses, office buildings, and retail centers. He was a devoted Christian who spent decades serving God as a Sunday school teacher, outreach leader, and as a lay pastor for a church in an inner-city housing project in Atlanta. The Lord used Mr. Bagwell to bring many souls to Christ. In addition to his parents, Mr. Bagwell was preceded in death by his sister Ronda Thurmond and brother, Amory Bagwell. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Carole Fleming Bagwell of Commerce; sons, Neal Bagwell of Commerce and Erik Bagwell (Gretchen) of Monroe; grandsons, Grant and Davis Bagwell; granddaughter, Callie Beth Bagwell; brothers, Merrill Bagwell (Wanda) and Steven Bagwell (Beverly) both of Commerce. A graveside service involving immediate family will take place at Grey Hill Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family request donations be made to either the Maysville Baptist Church Building Fund or the Gideons International. Little-Ward Funeral Home, Commerce is in charge of arrangements.