Joseph Louis Versen, Jr. age 78, of York, SC passed away on Friday, Sept. 29. Joe loved a party and said he would like to be able to attend his own funeral.

We are planning to have a celebration of his life that would make him proud.

Join us for a memorial service at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 5, at Trinity United Methodist Church, 22 E. Liberty St. York, SC, with Pastor Wanda Altman-Shirah officiating.

Afterward, we invite you to join us in continuing the celebration with music, storytelling and cold beer at Spring Lake Country Club, 1375 Springlake Road, York, SC.

Joe was born on September 18th, 1945 in Vicksburg, MS. He was the son of the late Joseph Versen, Sr. and Vera Cobb Versen. He played many sports in high school but excelled at football.

He was a running back and was very fast, earning him the nickname Jet.

He was recruited by many schools including Alabama and LSU but he chose Mississippi State because he wanted to play for Johnny Majors who was an assistant coach at the time.

He later attended Delta State where he and Terri met and fell in love and later married. They went on to have two daughters.

He started his career as a football coach and teacher and later moved to real estate. In 1982 they moved to York, SC and he embraced and served the community.

He was a real estate appraiser and broker. If you know Joe you know he enjoyed his work and worked very hard.

He received several small business awards including the York County Regional Chamber Business Person of the Year in 2020. He served on and chaired multiple local organizations.

He supported numerous local charities and organizations. He also coached Little League baseball and softball.

He was a basketball referee, where after once calling a foul early in a game a fan yelled “he’s been doing it all night,” which afterward he (and later the rest of the family) adopted to yell at any official anytime a foul or penalty was called.

After the death of his daughter, Breana, to leukemia, he became a supporter of the Be the Match Foundation and raised over $50,000 through breanaROCKS.

This was an organization that was created in her memory to help support Be the Match.

Throughout his life he loved sports and, while he was always a Mississippi State Bulldog, after having both daughters attend the University of South Carolina, he became a gamecock.

He loved going to the games and tailgating. He set and achieved the goal of going to at least one game in every SEC stadium. He also loved to dance, especially shag, and sing.

Joe loved his family more than anything and especially loved being a “Joe Joe” to his grandkids.

He is survived by his wife Terri; daughter Staci Versen-Rampey; brother Gregory Ryan Versen (Susie); grandsons Bryce Turner, Preston Rampey, Drew Turner, Jackson Rampey and Carson Turner. He has numerous nieces and nephews whom he loved spending time with, but Brewer Parker (Amy) was the one to whom he was the closest.

Their personalities were similar which led to a lot of great stories over the years. No doubt Brewer had a special place in Joe’s heart.

In addition to his parents, Joe was preceded in death by his daughter, Breana Turner and sister, Vera Ann Parker.

Memorials may be made to Trinity United Methodist Church or Be the Match. Online condolences may be made to the family at www.brattonfuneralhome.com. Bratton Funeral Home of York, SC is serving the Versen family.