James William Pepper was born April 3, 1928 in Alexandria, Louisiana. He passed away February 19, 2021 at the age of 92 at the Montclair Park Assisted Living facility in Shreveport, Louisiana after a slow decline in health for several years.
He was preceded in death by his parents Adley and Lillian Pepper and by his loving wife of over 60 years, Tommie Baird Pepper. He is survived by his daughter, Ann Andrews, and his son, John Pepper and husband, Randy Joiner. He has one granddaughter, Karen Jordan and husband Jason and three great-granddaughters, Ellie, Audrey, and Phoebe. He was also preceded in death by his sisters, Betty Craiglow and Loretta Jason.
James lived most of his life in the Haughton area. He graduated from Haughton High School in 1945. He was an active member of the Haughton United Methodist Church since the 1940s, where he served on the board, taught Sunday school, published the Sunday bulletin and more. He was a member of the Haughton and East 80 volunteer fire departments for over 40 years. He originally left Pepper’s Esso Service Station to drive a firetruck and fight fires and culminated his service as a dispatcher in his late 80s. He was a member of the local Lions Club and served as district governor. He transported disabled children to the summer Lions Camp and picked up garage sale items for their annual sales.
James was a veteran of the United States Air Force and was stationed in Alaska. He graduated from Louisiana Tech University. He retired from the Bossier Parish Tax Assessor Office as an accountant.
James was called J.W. until the military when he became James. Uncle James, Uncle Bubba, Daddy, and Granddaddy were his other cherished names. The final version of Granddaddy was altered a bit to Grand-dabby by his youngest great-granddaughter.
James and Tommie were life-long sports enthusiasts. They followed Haughton High School sports, college and professional teams. He loved building things like airplanes out of coke cans and bird feeders out of tin pans and cans. He loved corny jokes and emails from friends. The computer was a source of joy and amazement. Playing solitaire on his iPhone and looking at pictures of his girls were joys to the end. He got a big kick out of birthdays and loved sharing what famous person had a birthday currently.
A memorial video will be available for family and friends. The family requests any gifts that you might care to make be given to the Haughton United Methodist Church or the Lions Club.
The family offers special thanks for the excellent care received at the Montclair Park Assisted Living Center.
