Julius Elmore Harris

Dr. Julius Elmore Harris, 78, died peacefully in his home on Monday, February 8th, 2016. He was born, the last of four children, in Seaford, Virginia in 1937. As a boy, Julius became active with scouting. From this, a love of the outdoors was born. He loved being a boy scout and helping his environment and community. Through hard work and dedication, Julius eventually achieved scouting's highest honor and was awarded the rank of Eagle Scout. Julius graduated from York High School in 1956 excelling in both academics and sports. After high school he was accepted to VPI (Virginia Polytechnic Institute) where he pursued a degree in Engineering. He eventually obtained not only one but 3 advanced degrees from Virginia Tech. He received his Bachelors of Science in 1961, a Masters in 1964, and a Doctorate in Aeronautical Engineering in 1970.

He is survived by his loving wife of 55 years, Peggy Holloway Harris; two sons, John Eric Harris R. Ph. of Yorktown, Virginia and Mark Andrew Harris of Newport News, Virginia; and sister- in-law, Ruth P. Harris of Hampton, Virginia. He is also survived by his wife's three sisters, Faith Freeman - Joye, Mary Holloway Barr, and Betty H. Watkins. He is survived by numerous nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his father, James Henry Harris; stepfather, Robert Andrew Wood; mother, Rosa Novella Harris Wood; brothers, Mills Harris, and James H. Harris Jr., sister, Ethel Harris; and nephew Lester Shenk, Jr. Other important people preceding Julius's death include John Lowry and his wife, Lolita Long Lowry of Santa Rosa, California, who were godparents to Julius's two sons.

Julius started his career as a Student Trainee for NACA in 1957. He continued to work here while obtaining his education at Virginia Tech through their Co-op program. Julius worked for a total of thirty - five years as an Aeronautical Engineer for NASA. He worked in the Division of High Speed Aerodynamics under the branch of Fluid Dynamics. When he retired in 1992 he was Assistant Branch Head of this division.

After retiring from NASA, Julius became an adjunct professor at Christopher Newport College teaching mathematics. He loved teaching and helping students excel.

Julius's greatest love was the outdoors. He loved the water and spent many hours boating on the York and Poquoson Rivers and the Chesapeake Bay. He was also a master gardener and took pride in the appearance of his yard and garden in Marlbank where he lived since 1964. He was also a skilled woods craftsman and spent many hours crafting fine furniture in his wood shop. Julius also loved reading and history. He especially loved the history of the Peninsula and that of his home state Virginia. Later in life, after his son John became involved in the hobby of relic hunting, Julius became involved in this hobby as well. He spent many hours with his son John searching the fields and woods of the Peninsula and Richmond for Revolutionary and Civil War artifacts. His finds were numerous but his favorite find was an 1857 one dollar gold coin he found in Yorktown. This coin had been lost by a Union soldier while he was camped here in the spring of 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign. He wore it around his neck in a bezel and never took it off.

The family wishes to thank his many friends who helped Julius during his lengthy illness, especially two dear friends, Ron Persky and Billie Miller of Yorktown, Virginia.

A memorial service, celebrating Julius's life, will be held at Parklawn-Wood Funeral Home on Saturday, February 13th, 2016 at 2:00 with Reverend Charles Stacy presiding. Interment will be held privately.

Friends are encouraged to visit www.parklawn-woodfh.com to share memories and words of condolences with the family.

Arrangements are under the care of Parklawn - Wood Funeral Home, 2551 N. Armistead Avenue, Hampton, VA 23666.