Willie Koonce

The Staff & Management of R. Swinson Funeral Services and the Koonce family regretfully announces the transition of 63 year old, Willie Koonce, of 20-G Carver Ct, who passed away on Tuesday, May 12, 2020, at Harmony Hall Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

Services will be on Tuesday, May 19, 2020, at 10:03 AM at the Robert Swinson, Jr. Memorial Chapel. Burial will take place in the Hickory Grove Cemetery following the funeral service.   A public visitation will be held on Monday, May 18, 2020 from 4:00 PM-6:00 PM from the Robert Swinson, Jr. Memorial Chapel.

Due to social distancing for the COVID-19 pandemic, a public floating visitation will be limited to 10 at a time and funeral services will be limited to 50 people, which is consistent with the current recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Please keep the Koonce Family in your thoughts & prayers during these days of bereavement

Sympathy Cards & Floral Arrangements may be sent to R. Swinson Funeral Services 208 East Blount Street - Kinston, NC 28501.

~Obituary~
Willie Clyde Koonce, affectionately known as Clyde, was called home on May 12, 2020 at approximately 2:00pm. Clyde was born on December 26, 1956 in Dover, NC (Craven County) to the late Farris Koonce and Doris L. Koonce. Pure heart and a kind soul, Clyde grew up in New York City until relocating to Wilson, North Carolina in 1989. Because of the harsh realities of segregation in America and being hearing and speech impaired, Clyde was not able to receive a proper education. However, Clyde did not allow what some would consider a handicap, to impact his love and desire to make a dollar. He loved money and was very good at getting some. He was no fool and one thing you were not going to do was con him out of his money. Clyde would put on a suit and tie and tell his mother he was going to find a job. You could bet dollars to donuts that when Clyde returned home, he would have a business card of a place where he found some work.
Clyde loved to fish and found a deep love for his Brother In­Law David who taught him how to filet fish. His favorite place in New York to fish was the Hudson River. He quickly learned that he had to cook any fish he caught from the river, otherwise his mother would throw it away.
Clyde relocated back to Wilson, North Carolina after his beloved sister Wanda passed away. In his later years Clyde moved to Kinston, NC where he continued to work until he suffered a massive stroke in 2012. After the stroke Clyde became a resident of Harmony Hall Nursing and Rehab Home until his death.
Clyde lovingly leaves behind his beloved Mother Doris Koonce, daughter Nicole Pruden, Sisters Doris Williams and Sherrie McKinley, Brother In-Law David Williams, nephew Gerald Koonce, niece Shalem McKinley uncles Richard Moore and Daniel Hill and his Aunt Alice.