James Phillip "Phil" Philpot

Mr. Philpot was born in Carrollton, GA and was a graduate of Central High School and attended Gainesville College. He spent most of his life in the Athens area and enjoyed traveling for business and pleasure and tried to immerse himself into the local customs no matter where he traveled. He loved history and visiting as many Civil War sites and monuments as possible. He also loved sports, especially football. James was an avid University of Georgia football fan and supporter, as well as, Men’s and Ladies’ Basketball “Go Dawgs” and the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Hawks. In an effort to recruit other fans, if James was attending a sporting event and had an extra ticket, he would give it to a student or other deserving person just to experience the game with them and foster their love of the sport. Mr. Philpot worked with his father and brother in the family roofing business, where he was able to visit 48 of the 50 states of America, before starting his own construction business, NRS Systems. He also taught college English in China and coached basketball there, and this is where he met and fell in love with his wife, Ruth and where he was voted most popular teacher for six years in a row. James was a proud Leo and enjoyed living in a foreign country, because he was always the center of attention. He was a wonderful man and lived a wonderful life and was loved greatly by his family and will be sadly missed!

He was preceded in death by his father, Robert Philpot.

He is survived by his wife, Ruth Philpot of Watkinsville; sons, Remy Philpot of Watkinsville and Jeffrey Drake of Athens; daughters, Heather Philpot of Washington State and Stephanie O’Neal; mother, Mildred Philpot of Carrollton; brother, Bobby Philpot (Linda) of Carrollton; sisters, Sheila Phillips of Carrollton (Bobby) and Lynn Worthington, Atlanta Area.

Visitation: 12:30 to 2:00 PM Saturday, May 4, 2019 in Bernstein Funeral Home, immediately followed by a memorial service in the funeral home chapel.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the University of Georgia Athletic Association for the football program, P.O. Box 1472, Athens, GA 30603.

Bernstein Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

www.BernsteinFuneralHome.com