Fairfax community mourns longtime grocer and church deacon John Loadholt

John Nix Loadholt, the Fairfax-born grocer and longtime church deacon who helped anchor everyday life in Allendale County, died June 19 at 88. He and his wife, Peggy Davis Loadholt, were married 64 years, and together they spent more than 30 years owning and operating grocery stores that made Loadholt a familiar face to generations of local families.

In a town where the roots of Fairfax trace back to Owen’s Store at the crossroads that later became the town center, a merchant like Loadholt carried more than groceries through the community. Fairfax had 1,622 residents in the 2020 census, a size that makes each business owner, church leader and neighbor part of the same web of relationships. For many families, Loadholt was someone they saw at the store, at church, and across the routines that shape small-town life.

His strongest local imprint was at Fairfax First Baptist Church. The congregation was renamed from Fairfax Baptist Church in the early 1930s and became First Baptist Church of Fairfax in 1944. In March 1962, the church voted to build a new sanctuary, later described as a colonial-style structure, and the church remains active today with Sunday School, Bible study, outreach planning, prayer meeting and online worship. Loadholt served there as a deacon for many years and taught Sunday School for more than 50 years, a span that put him in front of children, parents and grandparents alike.

The obituary remembers Loadholt as a man who loved people and was always willing to help anyone in need. It also lists a large family left to carry his memory forward, including his daughters Lisa Loadholt Reuis, Lori Loadholt Martin and Sandra Loadholt Monts, along with several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His family ties, paired with his work in the grocery business and his long church service, made him part of the daily structure of Fairfax in a way few names are.

Visitation is scheduled for June 26 at Keith Smith Funeral Home, and funeral services will be held June 27 at Fairfax First Baptist Church. Donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Hospital or to the church in his memory. In a county where family businesses and church pews often define a person’s standing, Loadholt’s life remains tied to both the store counter and the sanctuary.