James H. Skelton

Jim Skelton joined the chapter eternal on March 14, 2021, just shy of his 93d birthday. Jim was born in Hartwell, Georgia on March 27, 1928. He grew up there and in Atlanta, graduating from Boys High School in 1945 and Emory University in 1949. He had a dream job his first years after college: traveling throughout the county as a trademark protection specialist for the Coca-Cola Company, collecting samples of suspected substitutes for the real thing from restaurants ballparks and bars. After he married Virginia Vining in 1951, she joined him on the road for the first three years of 69 years of marriage. When starting a family caused them to settle in one place, Jim became an insurance agent in Atlanta. After a few years of building a life insurance agency, he bought the Jones Logan Company, which he owned and operated until he retired at age 81. Just before his 90th birthday, Jim and Gin moved to St. Simons Island where they were residents at Marsh’s Edge.

Jim was preceded in death by his parents, James Howard Skelton and Bess Boyd Skelton, his brother Boyd Skelton and many lifelong friends. He is survived by his wife, Virginia, his daughter Mimi Skelton, his son, Hamp Skelton and daughter-in-law Karen, as well as three grandsons, James, Will and John Skelton.

Jim was a member of many organizations that gave his life extra meaning and most of which he served as an officer if not president. He particularly cherished his membership in SAE, the Buckhead Exchange Club, the Boys High Alumni Association and the lunch group that brought him much joy in retirement, the Bulldog Club. He enjoyed being the only Democrat in his Sunday school class at Wieuca Road Baptist Church, where he was a member since the mid-1960s. He was a charter member of the Yellow Chip Fellowship, a poker club founded by friends from the Emory Class of 1949. An avid sports fan, Jim enthusiastically attended more than 50 Georgia-Florida games and 60 Georgia-Georgia Tech games. He continued to make wonderful new friends well into his 80s. Jim leaves behind many younger friends who enriched his life.

Burial will be at Christ Church Frederica on St. Simons Island, where the family will have a small graveside service. In lieu of flowers, the family wishes to support the Parkinson’s Foundation, the Mayo Clinic or a charity of your choosing. The family expresses its gratitude to Nasiya Roberts for her exceptional care of Jim the last two years.