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Robert Brault is credited with saying: Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.

Bobby Wayne McKinney enjoyed the simple things in life, but in the end they were the things that mattered. He was a hard worker, enjoyed his family and attending church, and was a big fan of the Atlanta Braves. He also enjoyed fishing and was a long-time and faithful member of the Roan Mountain Masonic Lodge.

McKinney, who was a lifelong resident of the Piney Grove community in Hampton, died November 15 at the age of 82. He was preceded in death by his wife, Mildred, who died in 2007.

McKinney’s daughter, Eileen Woodby, said her father lived a “simple life, but a good life.”

“He enjoyed his friends, who in later years he often met with for a meal at Arby’s or at one of his favorite eateries in Unicoi. After he became sick and was unable to get out, people at the places he frequented would often ask about him and tell me they missed him. He was special to a lot of people,” Eileen shared.

She said her father was a good Christian man, who seldom missed church. “He was a quiet person, very laid back, and very forgiving. If anyone did him wrong, he never called them out. He simply put it in the past,” Eileen said.

McKinney worked at the old North American Rayon plant in Elizabethton for 30 years and retired as a forklift driver at Specialty Tire.

Eileen said her father was a big Atlanta Braves fan. His son-in-law, Brett Teach, took him to his first Braves game which was their first World Series game in Atlanta. “Every spring I would have to print their schedule for him. He knew every player, their stats, and watched every game on TV,” said his daughter.

Aside from baseball, McKinney enjoyed fishing in his younger years, His favorite fishing sports were Watauga and Douglas lakes. Aileen said that in her dad’s younger years, he liked to rabbit hunt and had several beagles. “He enjoyed being outside, just enjoying nature,” McKinney’s daughter shared about her father.

His favorite place to vacation was in Lancaster, Pa., but after a few days he was ready to come home.

Oddly enough, one of his favorite foods was hotdogs with fried potatoes, and for dessert he liked yellow cake with chocolate icing. “That was his birthday supper every year,” Eileen shared with a laugh. She also shared that fried chicken legs were also a favorite food along with some biscuits and gray.

“There was nothing complicated about Daddy. He was a simple man, who eat simple foods, and the important things in his life were family, church, work, and friends. His church was important to  him, and he was a dedicated Christian. He  took me and my sister, Sarah, to church when we were growing up,” Eileen said.

In addition to his two daughters, McKinney had three grandchildren – Jessica Woodby and Cameron and Faith Teach.

Bobby was a Master Mason, having been a member of Roan Mountain Masonic Lodge No. 566 for 39 years.

Bobby may have been a simple man who enjoyed the small things in life, but they were the important things in life. He had his priorities in order.

A friend wrote on the funeral home guestbook, “We had many wonderful times together at Piney Grove Church. He was a dear precious man of God that will be missed in our little community.”

Don’t we all hope that when we leave this world, someone will say that about us.