Travis Roger Whitley

HENDERSON - Travis Roger Whitley, age 83, passed away peacefully on December 22, 2024, after a long illness. Travis was born on April 6, 1941, in Wake County, where he grew up and spent most of his life. He lived in Henderson for the last 20 years. He was a proud graduate of Needham Broughton High School and Campbell University, where he earned a degree in business. After college, Travis met his future wife Jackie, and they started their family, as he worked as a managing agent in the commercial insurance business. In a highly successful, 50-year career, Travis trained with his first employer, the Aetna Insurance Company, in Hartford, CT and New York City, and later spent many decades with Seibels Bruce/Argus Life, Capital City Insurance Company, and Bankers Insurance. In 2013, Travis earned the “Company Professional of the Year” award from the Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina. Throughout his working years, he loved traversing eastern NC, making friends wherever he went, and finding every backroad barbecue and Southern restaurant along the way. The consummate storyteller and always a sharply dressed man, Travis had a big personality and loved people, socializing, and enjoying all kinds of good food and drink, whether a favorite dish or something new. He also loved music and cutting a rug! For decades, he spent his leisure time deer and bird hunting, fishing, playing golf, watching ACC sports, and reading about all kinds of history and nature topics. Although he was a very proud North Carolina boy, he loved seeing other parts of the country. With his wife Jackie, he carted his daughters around the eastern and southern United States to soccer tournaments and on college trips. He also loved spending time with his family in Massachusetts, New York, California, and Kentucky. In his later years, his passion was spending time with his partner Faith V. Smith and their combined family--whether at home, going to church, going to quilt shows, or relaxing at the beach in Emerald Isle, Travis’s happy place! Along with his beloved Faith and her family, Travis is survived by his elder daughter, Lona Tracee Whitley (Amanda) of Sudbury, MA; his granddaughter, Susana Grace Bronsztein, and dear ex-wife, Lona Jacquelyn G. Whitley, both of Lexington, KY; his sister, Nancy Jane Allen (Richard Twigg) of Emerald Isle; and his brother Marty Kipp Whitley (Liz) of Ocean Isle. He was preceded in death by his cherished parents, Roger Gaston and Janie Elma White Whitley, and his dearest younger daughter and namesake, Lynley Travis Whitley. Travis leaves behind many other extended family members, friends, and business associates, who were close to his heart. Memorial services will be planned for and publicized in spring 2025. Interment will take place in a private ceremony. For those wishing to honor Travis’s memory by charitable contribution, the family asks that donations be made to his church for the past 20 years, Cokesbury Methodist Church, c/o Ruth Moss, 1705 Allison Cooper Road, Henderson, NC 27537. To share a remembrance of Travis or offer condolences to his family, please visit https://www.jmwhitefuneralhome.com/.