Oral Keith Grubbs

Oral “Keith” Grubbs, 72, passed away unexpectedly at his home on Sunday, September 27, 2026. His passing leaves an emptiness that words cannot fully express, but also a lifetime of laughter, love, faith, stories, and memories that his family will carry with them forever.

Keith was born on May 8, 1954, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina to Joe and Marcia Wylene Grubbs.

To know Keith was to love him—and most likely, to laugh with him. He had a huge sense of humor and an incredible gift for making people laugh. He never met a stranger because, to Keith, a stranger was simply someone he hadn’t had the chance to talk to yet. Wherever he went, he made friends. He had a way of making people feel welcome and comfortable, and chances are, before the conversation was over, he had made them smile.

Above all else, Keith loved the Lord with all his heart. His faith was an important part of the man he was and the life he lived. He loved people openly and genuinely, and his family finds comfort in knowing that the faith he held so dearly throughout his life has now carried him home.

Keith also had a passion and talent for painting signs, something that allowed his creativity and personality to shine through his work. Professionally, he worked for JKS as Track Services Manager, a job that took him across the country to NASCAR tracks. As his family might say with a smile, Keith and his crew traveled from track to track “cleaning up what they messed up.” It was work that suited a man who enjoyed people, traveling, telling stories, sharing laughs, and leaving behind friends everywhere he went.

In the summer of 1986, Keith met Connie at Miller Park during a Parents Without Partners gathering. Their story began there, and it did not take them long to realize they had found something special in one another. On December 6, 1986, they were married, beginning a life together that would span nearly forty years. Together, they blended and built a family filled with children, grand and great-grandchildren, love, laughter, and countless memories.

Keith was the proud Daddy of Tina Pratt and husband Dwayne, Jessica Spangler and husband Carl, Melanie Grubbs, Marcia Stanley and husband Daniel, Laura Grubbs, and Joey Grubbs and wife Lindsey.

One of Keith’s greatest jobs was being PawPaw Grubbs. He leaves behind his beloved grandchildren, Dylan Butcher and wife Michele, Erica Nail and husband Patrick, Dawn Jones and husband Chris, Parker Pratt, Savannah Hoots, Carson Stanley and wife Hailey, Hailey Grubbs, Gracey Lambert and husband Max, Sophie Pratt, Mason Hoots, Carter Hoots, Cooper Pratt, Maddie Stanley, and Jackson Grubbs. He also left behind his beloved great-grandchildren, Brantlee Butcher, Gryphon Essick, Cheyenne Butcher, Logan Nail, Salem Nail, Noah Jones, Kolter Butcher, Birdie Ann Jones, Emersyn Butcher, Sawyer Stanley, and Abel Lambert.

He is also survived by his brother, Brad Grubbs and wife Alice, along with many other family members and friends whose lives were made better simply by knowing them.

Keith was preceded in death by his parents, Joe and Wylene Grubbs, and grandchild, Cheyenne Hoots.

There are people who pass through this world quietly, and then there are people like our Daddy. People who fill a room. People whose laughter becomes part of the soundtrack of a family’s life. People who can turn an ordinary story into one worth hearing, make a friend standing in line, find humor when it is needed most, and leave people smiling long after they have gone.

Daddy loved BIG. He laughed BIG. He believed and trusted the Lord deeply. And he gave his friendship freely.

His family was his heart, and the love he gave them will continue through every story told around a table, every burst of laughter that sounds a little like his, every painted sign that brings his talent to mind, and every NASCAR race that reminds them of all those miles and all those tracks he traveled over the years.

His family was not ready to say goodbye. There should have been more stories, more jokes, more trips, more conversations, and simply more time. But they are grateful beyond measure for the years they were given with him.

Daddy was loved by all, and he loved all.

While those who loved him will miss his voice, his jokes, his stories, his laughter, and simply knowing he was there, they find peace in the faith that meant so much to him: that this goodbye is not forever.

Until we see you again, Daddy, keep them laughing in Heaven.

You will be deeply missed, forever loved, and never forgotten.

A funeral service will be held at 3:00 pm on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at First Pentecostal Holiness Church of Winston-Salem, 998 Hutton St, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, officiated by Pastor Tres Ward and Pastor Chip Webb. A visitation will be held an hour prior to the service at the church. A burial will follow the service at Loves United Methodist Church Cemetery, 3020 Main St, Walkertown, NC 27051.