Aaron Spell

On Tuesday, May 2, 2023, Aaron Jean Spell, beloved father, son, brother, partner, and friend, passed away at age 45.

Aaron was born July 11, 1977 in Peoria, Illinois, and spent much of his childhood in Lehigh Acres, Florida. His first job was a mechanic at 16, a passion and set of skills he carried with him when he enlisted in the Navy. He proudly served as an Engineman until suffering a stroke and brain aneurysm at age 24, and then continued to serve as a Petty Officer until he was medically discharged.  Until his passing, he chose jobs that allowed him to work with his hands and interact with others.

Aaron was a great socializer: you couldn’t know him for more than 20 minutes without hearing a story and many, many jokes. He loved spending time with friends (he regularly met with them for breakfast at Huddle House, starting each day catching up and laughing, straight out of a sitcom). He traveled as often as he could, especially if it meant he could spend time with loved ones in nature. In the past several years, he traveled to Hawaii and New Zealand, where he swam, hiked, and camped with his girlfriend, and sent photos to his family that made them very happy for him and just a teeny bit jealous. He also made sure to take his daughters to Illinois, Alabama, and Texas to connect with family. He was an avid biker and hiker, and loved even more to brag about how adventurous, strong, and fast his young daughters were on (and off) the trails. Aaron beamed when speaking about his son’s studies and the man he was becoming. He loved connecting with those in his community, and was quick to offer help and treat others equally. He was playful, romantic, hopeful, offbeat, complicated, funny, and continued to grow until his too young passing.

Aaron is survived by his three children, Dillon (mother, Maria), and Mackenzie and Leah (mother, Becky), his father, Paul, his mother, Jan, his siblings, Neil, Sarah, Paul (Jason), and Isaac, his girlfriend, Sue, and several cousins, uncles, aunts, and a nephew. A funeral service will be held at 1 pm on Saturday, May 6th at Shoal Creek Baptist Church, 184 Shoal Creek Church Loop, Whittier, NC 28789.