Vance Dampier, Sr.
VANCE ELLIS DAMPIER, SR.
Bardin lost a good man when Vance Ellis Dampier, Sr., 77, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, May 5, 2025. Born May 22, 1947 in Hague, FL northwest of Gainesville, Vance passed away at UF Health Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine following a brief illness.
A 1966 graduate of Palatka Senior High School, Vance was a member of the armed forces and severed honorably in the U.S. Army from 1968-1972. He later joined the National Guard Reserve. He had nothing but respect for the men and women who gave military service to the nation.
Vance was a member and deacon at Providence Baptist Church in Bardin. In life, he was a Christian first and faithfully served the Lord. He retired from Iluka Mineral Sands in Green Cover Springs. He previously worked for Gator Logging and had been currently employed by 4-C Timber. Vance was an avid hunter, and in his leisure time he enjoyed hunting and fishing with his grandkids and riding his buggy.
Vance was a farmer and gardener who loved sharing the fruits of his labors with family and friends. One of his favorite traditions was family time at Christmas and sharing the story of the birth of his Lord and Savior with his family and friends each year. He loved people and shared the Gospel with everyone he met.
Besides his parents, Ellis Bradley Dampier and Viola Million, Vance was preceded in death by two sisters, Emagene Dampier Viers and Lola Acree.
Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Kathy Chesser Dampier; his children, Vance Ellis Dampier, Jr. (Teresa), Tammy Schwall (Doug), and Cyndi Brown (Tommie); nine grandchildren, Jessie Ward (Adam), Michelle Dampier (Angel), Jerrin McConnell (Blake), MaKayla Foster, Michael Castaing, Hayden Newman, Ashleigh Schwall, Jefferson Schwall, and Raegan Brown; and five great grandchildren, Ashton Ward, Taytum Ward, Axle Ward, Brentley Wyatt, and Amaya Mera.
Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m. Friday, May 9, 2025 at Providence Baptist Church in Bardin with Pastor Shaun Thomas and Pastor Glenn Martin officiating. Friends may call at the church after 10:00 a.m.—an hour before the start of the service.
Burial will follow the service in Providence Cemetery with military honors rendered by the US Army.
Messages of sympathy may be shared on Vance’s online tribute page at: themastersfuneralhome.com.
Masters Funeral Home of Palatka is in charge of arrangements.