Joseph Clark Greene,

Joseph Clark Greene, III March 4, 1975 - December 3, 2020 Joseph Clark Greene, III took his last run on the evening of Dec. 3, 2020. He leaves behind his loving wife of 15 years (Amy Medlock-Greene) and daughter (Mallory) as well as a son (Ian) and daughter (Gwen) from his previous marriage. He is also survived by his father, Joseph Clark Greene, Jr. (Ethel), mother Louise Joy DeLancey Higginbotham, sisters Holly Gillam (Chris) and Heather LeClere and brother Daniel (Lauren) as well as his niece (Charlotte) and nephew (Aidan). Born in Painesville, Ohio on March 4, 1975, Joe was a precocious youngster. The third child and eldest son of the family, Joe lived to harass both his older sisters and his younger brother, a habit he continued to this day. His family moved from Ohio to Greenville, S.C. when Joe was three, eventually making their way to Greenwood and then Columbia. Joe had a brilliant mind, and was especially gifted at math and science. He was also a prolific speller, and even won the District spelling bee when his family lived in Greenwood. He won the South Carolina Lieutenant Governor’s Writing Award when he was in the sixth grade (with an idea that was inspired by an idea from his sister, Heather). He should have graduated with the Irmo High School class of 1993, but after he failed to turn in his final project in his U.S. Government class, he found himself graduating from summer school at Brookland-Cayce. He insisted his children not follow in his footsteps in that regard. After high school, Joe entered the University of South Carolina with neither a plan nor declared major, and soon found himself enlisting in the U.S. Air Force to support his new wife and her baby. After a brief stint of basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Joe was stationed at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss. where he earned his certification in Basic Electronic Principles and Electronic Warfare Systems. He later served at Pope Air Force Base in Fayetteville, N.C. and earned an Associate’s Degree in Avionics Systems Technology from Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. Joe served as an Electronic Warfare Systems Journeyman at both Pope Air Force Base and Osan Air Base in the Republic of Korea. Additionally, he served as a part of “Operation Southern Watch” in Iraq, where he was awarded an Air Force Expeditionary Medal. He also earned an Air Force Achievement Medal for his service during Hurricane Georges in 1998, a National Defense Service Medal, and both an Air Force Good Conduct Medal and Longevity Service Award Medal. After his heart stopped and he was diagnosed with Brugada Syndrome while on active duty, he was honorably discharged in 2002 when he retired at the rank of Staff Sergeant (E-5). After retiring from the Air Force, Joe returned to the University of South Carolina with renewed purpose and ambition. While at USC, he also learned to speak Chinese, and was invited by one of his professors to deliver a presentation at an International Chinese Calligraphy Conference hosted by the University. He ultimately earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology, staying on the Dean’s List or President’s List each semester. The only B he earned was in his “Psychology of Marriage” class (which he completed a week before he wed his second wife, Amy). After more than 15 years together, Amy thinks he should at least have earned an A-. Although Joe majored in Sociology, his true employable skill set centered around his love of and talent for fixing and building computers. He began working with the Information Technology department at South Carolina Labor, Licensing and Regulation (LLR) in 2006, eventually making his way to a similar position with the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority (PEBA) in 2013. He loved helping people understand computers and how they work, and he possessed both the skills and the patience to teach others how not to be afraid of or intimidated by technology. Joe also had the skills and patience to encourage and train others to pursue his favorite sport: running. He completed his first half-marathon with the South Carolina Governor’s Cup in November 2010, and two years later he conquered his first full marathon in Greenville. That year he also took on his biggest running challenge to date and joined a team to complete the Palmetto 200 road race from Columbia to Charleston. He went on to participate in the Palmetto 200 as an integral member of Team ‘Merica for the next five out of six years, and he even convinced Amy to join him for three of those races, too. During those years, he also became an active participant in Team RWB, an organization whose mission is “to enrich the lives of America’s veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity.” Joe ran enough 5ks, 10ks, 12ks and half marathons to add up to a cross-country journey (often placing first, second or third in his age group), but his favorite races included those he completed with his wife including the Kiawah Half Marathon, multiple Ray Tanner Home Run 12ks, Star Wars: The Dark Side races (10k and Half Marathon), as well as the Disney Princess Half Marathon and Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend races. In 2017, Joe and Amy also earned medals for the Disney Coast-to-Coast challenge, completing half marathons at both Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disneyland Resort in California. Joe especially loved running with Mallory in the Saluda Shoals Sleigh Bell Stroll, the Governor’s Cup Fun Run, the Color Run, and the Disney Princess 5k (their last race together in 2019). Joe abhorred mayonnaise, the sound the cotton ball makes when you pull it out of a new bottle of medicine, cleaning the bathroom, the feeling of squishy socks and shoes after getting caught in the rain, people who don’t believe in science, Comic Sans, misplaced apostrophes, anyone who pronounces “gif” with a soft “g,” television commercials, Amy’s “honey-do” lists, Paul McCartney’s “Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time,” and people who use the word “irregardless.” He believed in two-factor authentication and the mission of Team RWB, that “The Expanse” was the greatest show in the Star Trek universe and Ravenclaw was the best Harry Potter house, and that the Biden/Harris White House will help steer the U.S. back towards sanity. He loved his wife and children, the exhilaration that came from a good run, playing a round of disc golf with Ian, chasing fireflies with Mallory, gaming with Gwen and dramatic lip sync performances in the car with Amy. He enjoyed cooking vegan meals and baking bread (“The secret is lecithin,” he would say), fixing anything computer-related, running dungeons with his friends and family in the Colorful Guild on the Proudmoore realm, dad jokes, riding his electric unicycle, hanging out with his bandmates, photographing pay phones and butterflies, working on the wooded trail behind his house, finding good deals on any electronic equipment, striking goofy poses on camera with his family, and putting Sriracha on everything. More than anything, though, Joe loved music, and he spent more than half his life working to become the best musician he could be. Sometimes to Amy’s chagrin, Joe was regularly attached to his 5-string bass--even on family vacations.He was in more bands than possible to count, but received his biggest following with Emory Lane and The Disquiet (the two bands he was an integral part of at the time of his passing). He attracted a plethora of positive praise for his skills, with the Free Times in particular drawing attention to him for “working some serious funky bass into the rhythm section” with Emory Lane and creating “a terrific, unsettling basher of a rock ‘n’ roll tune” with The Disquiet’s “Tyrant” (which also features a sweet Joe Greene bass riff). He wrote his final song the day before he died, recording both the bass and drum tracks in his home studio. But the bass wasn’t Joe’s only instrument. He played the guitar, piano, drums, cello and ukulele. He sang, too. He was pleased as punch that his daughter inherited his love of music and performance, and he loved working with her to polish her own songs. They also bonded over their love of the theater, and Joe loved being a “stage dad,” helping construct and tear down sets for each of Mallory’s plays with the Irmo Chapin Recreation Commission’s Children’s Theater Program. He was a skilled visual artist, posting his pencil-and-ink sketches to his social media accounts and using his artistic talents to design everything from his own tattoos to his bands’ logos, t-shirts, stickers and other merchandise. He leaves behind scores of poems, written missives about politics and religion, snippets of song lyrics, and ideas for stories he hoped to flesh out someday. Joe looked forward to spending time at Walt Disney World with his family, and he, Mallory and Amy vacationed there multiple times a year. He quickly achieved the level of “Master Sorcerer” in the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom game, and he enjoyed helping strangers learn to play the game (often giving them stacks of his extra spell cards). He loved roller coasters of all kinds, but was a special fan of the ones he could ride with Mallory (especially Expedition Everest: Legend of the Forbidden Mountain). He loved all things Star Wars, and was like a kid in a candy store whenever he visited Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. He thought “The Mandalorian'' was one of the best elements of the Star Wars franchise, but he hated Baby Yoda’s real name. He leaves behind an extensive collection of Baby Yoda figurines, plushes and toys. He also leaves behind an epic collection of hats and sunglasses, as well as multiple single socks and earbuds without their corresponding mates. His wife will probably find his lost AirPods in a completely random place. He kept his family well-fed by cooking most of their vegan meals, and challenged himself to create new, original recipes on a regular basis. He left his YouTube channel’s subscribers detailed preparation steps for his marinated tofu and vegetable stir fry and signature cumin-infused veggie quesadillas, but unfortunately takes his secret recipe for the ultimate Impossible burger and the best sweet tea in the world with him to the grave. Nicknamed “Clean Joe Greene” for his lack of vices, his only guilty pleasures included prolific snacking, soda consumption, and lots and lots of carbs. Joe could build just about anything, most recently a combination hammock stand and outdoor movie screen frame for his backyard and a custom end table for his wife’s home office. He could also fix just about anything from computers and cars to his wife’s busted Christmas ornaments and his daughter’s skinned knees. Joe’s co-workers at PEBA called him a “Renaissance Man,” and it’s a fitting moniker. About the only thing Joe couldn’t do was stay away from a politically-charged discussion on Facebook. Joe had aspirations of being a tree farmer with his wife after their retirement to her family’s property in North Augusta, S.C.. He also had ambitions of piloting one of the boats transporting Guests across the Seven Seas Lagoon at Walt Disney World Resort. Joe Greene was goodness personified. His intelligence, wit, humor, grace and love will be missed by all who knew him. He implored everyone to live by the immortal words of Ted “Theodore” Logan and Bill S. Preston, Esquire: “Be excellent to each other.” Joe’s philosophy of life can be summed up in the chorus of The Disquiet’s “Nothing Left”: “I believe in the good in people; I refuse to believe that there’s nothing left: Giving people helping hands, giving everything you can-- Everyone deserves a second chance...” Depending on COVID restrictions, his family is currently planning a fun run and outdoor musical celebration of Joe’s life in March 2021. To be updated on the plans, send an email to celebratejoegreene@gmail.com. Memorials in Joe’s honor can be made to any of the following organizations: The American Heart Association (earmark your donation for Brugada Syndrome research) Team RWB Girls Rock Columbia The Southern Interscholastic Press Association