Amby Foote, age 98, a remarkable athlete, coach, referee, and mentor whose contributions to sports touched generations of young people in Johnston County, passed away on October 4, 2026, in Smithfield, N.C. He was born March 5, 1928, in Sherrill, New York.

Mr. Foote was an exceptional athlete from an early age. While attending the former Sherrill High School in his hometown of Sherrill, New York, he earned varsity letters in seven sports in a single school year—soccer, football, bowling, volleyball, basketball, track, and baseball.

His ten-year playing career included both professional and amateur baseball. He began his professional baseball career in 1947 with the minor league team in Orlando, Florida, where he also attended the Jersey Joe Stripp baseball camp. In 1949, he pitched for the Smithfield-Selma Leafs of North Carolina’s Tobacco State League, winning 18 games and recording 20 complete games. It was during his time in Smithfield that he met his future wife, Sue Evelyn Ennis.

Mr. Foote’s baseball career took him to Burlington, Greenville, Rocky Mount, Lexington, Granite Falls, Reidsville, St. John in Nova Scotia, Winston-Salem, New Orleans, Waycross, and Syracuse. He participated in spring training with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization in Vero Beach, Florida, in 1949 and with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in Orlando in 1953. He also played professional basketball in the 1950s in Pennsylvania and New York with the Continental Professional Basketball League. His love of baseball eventually led him to coaching and mentoring young athletes. He twice served as the Johnston County American Legion Post 132 baseball coach. From 2003 through 2012, he served as a pitching coach for Smithfield-Selma High School. During those ten years, the team won six conference championships and reached the playoffs eight times. Mr. Foote was especially proud that 30 of his players earned college baseball scholarships.

Among those he coached were players who went on to distinguished baseball careers. Jerry Sands reached the major leagues, playing for several teams. Lloyd Yehu Cox Jr. played in the 2006 College Baseball World Series in Omaha while attending the University of North Carolina and went on to play six years in the minor leagues. Ray Tanner coached at both NCSU and the University of SC where, while at USC, the baseball team won back-to-back NCAA championships.

Mr. Foote’s service to athletics extended well beyond the baseball field. Beginning in the 1970s, he umpired high school and college baseball for more than 30 years and served as a basketball referee for 35 years. In 1996, he was recognized as the top baseball umpire in North Carolina. He also served for many years as a booking agent for high school baseball umpires.

Perhaps one of his most meaningful contributions came in the late 1960s, when he established Johnston County’s first integrated basketball program for seventh- and eighth-grade students. A few years later, he created a sixth-grade girls’ recreational basketball league. Some of the young women who participated in that program went on to receive the first women’s college athletic scholarships at Smithfield-Selma High School.

For his lifelong contributions to athletics and the community, Mr. Foote was inducted into the Johnston County Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. In January 2024, he was also honored to be part of the George Whitfield annual awards induction ceremony. His legacy of athletic excellence continued through his family. His son, Barry Foote, was a standout multi-sport athlete at Smithfield-Selma High School. Barry went on to play 10 years in Major League Baseball and later spent 14 years as a professional baseball manager and coach, completing 24 years in professional baseball.

Mr. Foote was predeceased by his wife, Sue; his brother, Roland; and his parents, Charles and Anna Foote.

Mr. Foote is survived by his son, Barry Foote (Debbie); daughters, Kathy Dils (Mike) and Vicky Foote; grandchildren, Derek Foote (Courtney), Brittany Foote, Chelsea Mellonas (Patrick), John Calhoun (Megan), Katherine Dils, Elizabeth Walker (Ben), and Emilee Wefald, four great-grandchildren; and several special nieces and nephews. Amby Foote’s life was defined not simply by the many games he played, coached, or officiated, but by the people he encouraged along the way. He opened doors for young athletes, helped them pursue opportunities through sports, and left an enduring mark on the Johnston County community.

His legacy will live on through the many players, coaches, officials, students, family members, and friends whose lives he touched—and through the generations of athletes who followed the path he helped create.

A funeral service will be held on Sunday, October 11, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. in the chapel at Parrish Funeral Home. The family will receive visitors one hour prior to the service, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Burial will follow in Sunset Memorial Gardens. 

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the SECU Hospice House in Smithfield, PO Box 1376, Smithfield, NC 27577.