On June 5, 1940, Ada Springfield and Jack Averyheart increased the population of Brownsville, Tennessee, by one to 4,012 residents with the birth of a son they named Willie, the 15th of their 16 children.

After graduating from high school, he served as a soldier in the United States Army. He moved to Cleveland, Ohio following his older siblings. Willie met June Knight and they were married on June 8, 1968 and together they had two children.
A career educator, he was a true teacher who did not confine his gifts to the classroom. He earned a Master’s Degree in education from The University of Akron and culminated his service as the principal of Martin Luther King Jr. High School in Cleveland, Ohio.
He always found himself giving back to the community as a coach of basketball, football, softball and track teams, hence the nickname “Coach”. He loved attending high school and college football games, track meets, and basketball games.
Willie was a member of Holy Spirit Catholic Church and Men of Faith.
Coach or “AV”, as he was also called, enjoyed playing chess and solving puzzles to keep his mind sharp. He was an avid reader and an ice cream connoisseur.
On June 14, 2021, nine days after his 81st birthday, Willie Averyhart transitioned from this life into one of eternal rest. He leaves to cherish his memory, his loving wife of 53 years, Mrs. June Averyhart; his daughter, Lisa C. Averyhart; his son, P. Todd Averyhart; and his siblings, Ada Averyheart, James Henry Averyheart, and Thomas Averyheart. Others who count it a blessing to have known him are his cousins, nieces, nephews, extended family members, and countless friends and former players and students. He was preceded in death by his parents, Ada Springfield Averyheart and Jack Averyheart, and his siblings, Otis Averyheart, Alma Cooper, J. D. Averyheart, Lloyd Averyheart, Mattie Myles, Ethel Coleman, and John Averyheart.