1.AlmaFairchild, born March 05, 1908 in Rockhouse Fork of Jennies Creek, Johnson Co., Ky.; died March 30, 1984 in Paintsville, Ky. She was the daughter of 2. LeviFairchild and 3. LucyHitchcock. She married (1) JohnDownyConley May 01, 1926 in Paintsville, Ky. He was born July 17, 1903 in Rockhouse Fork of Jennies Creek, Johnson Co., Ky., and died March 18, 1986 in Paintsville, Ky.. He was the son of Alphonso F. Conley and Pheobe H. Rice.
Notes for John Downy Conley:
"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;"
I Corinthians 1:25-27
On July 17th, 1903, a son was born to Alphonso and Pheobe Conley. According to the birth certificate filed in the Johnson County Clerk's Office, his name was John W. No one knows what the W. stood for. In his day, he was as strong as an ox. He loved to wrestle. Dad said he would hear a commotion outside their house and he would go to the door and see Pappa John playfully wrestling with a traveler on the road outside their house. Once while wrestling a man at the barber shop he held his opponent so high, that he kicked out the ceiling light. He worked like a brute until he was no longer able to work. Concerning this world and the things in it, the most memorable thing he ever told me was, "I've eat cereal all my life and Cherrios are the best there is." There was another John Conley at Staffordsville and their mail was often mixed up so Pappa took on the middle initial D. When you asked him what the D. stood for he would grin mischievously and say "Downy, like the fabric softener."
John Conley was deeply in love with Alma Fairchild. I believe the love he felt for Granny Conley was stronger on their last day together than their first. He always looked to her and respected her. She was the light of his life. She would always brush him off when he would love on her, but I think she knew how he felt and how blessed she was for his caring. John's love for Alma also showed in his love for their children.
John left school after the third grade and from that point on he knew little but hard work. He worked in the fields, he worked for the highway department, he even worked at the Paintsville Bakery for a time. In a day when your groceries are loaded in your car by supermarkets, it is hard to imagine the days when Pappa and I walked from Rockhouse to O.I. Williams Grocery and back carrying a load of groceries in both arms, but that's the way he lived. Hard.
John raised his family in a small two-room home on the bank of the Rockhouse fork of Jennies Creek about a tenth of a mile beyond the Rockhouse Freewill Baptist Church. John never had any money to speak of. He never drove a car. When I was 8 or 9 years old, he still drew his water from a well and the toilet was around the corner of the house. As men judge men Pappa never had much to speak of.
John Conley's life would have come and gone and he would have slipped quietly back into the sands of time except for one thing.
John Conley knew God.
By this I don't mean he knew about God or that he knew of God.
John Conley knew God.
The way I know Wallace Conley. The way you know your father. John talked to God and God talked back to John. For hours on end they conversed.
Upon meeting people for the first time, his initial question was "Honey, are you ready to go?"
If I were to be so bold, I'm certain folk would judge me as a self righteous fool. When John Conley asked his question, I have seen those who would have judged themselves among the meanest of men brought to their knees. When he asked the question and looked at you with his faded eyesight, whether you would admit it or not, you knew there was a land called Heaven and that Uncle John was going to be there and he wanted you to be there with him more than anything else in the world. This is the true power of God living in men.
