Joseph Paul Wossilek

Joseph "Joey" Paul Wossilek, 53, a resident of Luverne, Alabama and formerly of Brantley, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, September 18th, 2023. A graveside service for Joey will be held at 2 PM on Friday, September 22nd, in Shanghi Cemetery in Quinton, Alabama with Turners Funeral Home of Luverne directing. Family and friends will meet in the cemetery at service time.

Joey was a proud graduate of Andalusia High School and later went on to Lurleen B. Wallace Community College and the University of Alabama at Birmingham to earn his Associate's Degree in Physical Therapy. He dedicated the rest of his life to his work at a physical therapy assistant for over 25 years, primarily in the Luverne area, including at Luverne Health and Rehabilitation and Crenshaw Community Hospital. It didn't take long for him to become a favorite of virtually all the "little old ladies" he helped! His good looks and charming demeanor certainly helped endear him to them, but, more than anything, it was how he never failed to go the extra mile for them. Joey exuded compassion and treated every patient how he himself would want to be treated. He possessed an enormous amount of patience for even the most difficult and recalcitrant patients, as this author knows from personal experience as one of those patients! He never gave up on anyone he was helping and, most importantly, he never let them give up on themselves. The greatest legacy any of us can leave is the knowledge that we left this world a better place than we found it, and Joey most assuredly did that. Each and every day he got up and helped people during one of the worst times of their lives when they were most often facing immeasurable pain, and he did it with nothing but grace and love in his heart. That is why every patient remembers him with love and affection, as well as gratitude for a job well done.

While the world may feel that Joey's work is his greatest legacy, he would wholeheartedly disagree. To him, there was no greater role he could have held than that of "Father." His sons, Christian and Aiden, meant literally everything to him. If you only ever had one five-minute conversation with him, then you were going to walk away at least knowing that he had two sons who he loved to the moon and back. His pride in his boys simply radiated off of him and they never doubted how much they meant to him. Joey was the kind of dad who made sure he was always present in their lives no matter what they were doing or how busy he was. He also shared one of his greatest passions with them, his love of music. It didn't matter the genre, he just truly loved music from a very young age. He was the kind of person who made a habit of sharing songs that had touched him with his family and friends, in the hopes they would love it as much. Therefore, you can imagine his delight that his oldest son not only made a career out of one of their shared passions, but a successful one as well. Of course, you didn't need to inquire if Christian had released any new music because Joey was going to make sure you heard it as soon as it was available!

Finally, Joey will be remembered for his love of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He was a dedicated Baptist and was currently attending Word of Faith in Brantley. He was determined to live his life in such a way that his faith would be evident to all. He knew the Bible backwards and forwards, and was well known for his love of sharing the Scripture with others, including his patients. He truly loved the Lord with his whole heart and that love is what made him such a caring, kind, and compassionate soul. That love was yet another reason so many of his patients loved him. He uplifted them in some of their darkest days and allowed the Gospel to inspire him to love others as Christ commanded. Between his work and his faith, Joey had deep ties within his local community and was well-loved by all those who knew him. He will be deeply missed by every single one of them, but most especially those who loved him best, his family. To say that they are grief-stricken is an understatement, but they can at least find comfort in the knowledge that he is not only in Heaven, but finally reunited with the mother he loved so very much and lost far too young. They have no doubt that she was there waiting on him with her arms open wide for a joyous reunion.

Joey was preceded in death by his beloved mother, Carolyn Reeder Wossilek. He is survived by his wife, Crystal Rhodes Wossilek; treasured sons, Christian Wossilek and Aiden Wossilek; stepdaughters, Brieahna (John) Vermillion and Blainley Reaves; step-granddaughter, Aryah Vermillion; father, Joseph Wossilek; and brother, Shan Wossilek.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations please be made to Joey's church, Word of Faith in Brantley, Alabama, as he would want more than anything to have the gospel spread further.