James Howard Henry

Born on October 29, 1928 in Mansfield, Ohio, the only child of Vaughn M. Henry and Doris T. Kallmerten Henry, Jim’s boyhood was shaped by the experiences that both farm life and town life could offer. But he remembered his most formative experience was when at age 11 his family visited the World’s Fair in New York City, and he was most inspired by the General Motors exhibit. This started a life-long love of cars.

Jim fell in love with Beverley Young at Columbus High School, and they married in 1947. With her support, he graduated from Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Industrial Design in 1950. They moved to Detroit, and later Pontiac, Michigan, where he worked 11 years for GM in design engineering. In those same years, he and Beverley had four children.

In 1959, Jim moved his young family to San Diego, California to lend his industrial design skills to the Atlas missile program as a contractor with Volt Technical Inc., work that he was especially proud of. When that contract ended, Jim moved his family to Phoenix, Arizona, for more aerospace design work with Goodyear Aerospace. However, the advent of computerized technical illustration brought an end to his industrial design career.

In 1970, Jim and Beverley moved back to San Diego, this time settling in La Mesa. He drove for Yellow Cab, and in 1985 he started his own taxi company, JB Taxi. In the 1990s, Jim and Beverley moved to Rancho Bernardo and Jim took on a third career as steward of an inheritance. In 2000, with Beverley’s passing, Jim moved back to La Mesa and joined First Presbyterian Church of El Cajon.

Jim enjoyed living independently well into old age. Jim lived the last 5 years of his life with daughter Susan in Del Mar Heights, and enjoyed frequent visits by his children and extended family. His soul was called home at age 97, January 26, 2026.

Donations in honor of James H. Henry Sr may be made to two of his favorite non-profit organizations:

Habitat for Humanity,

https://secure.habitat.org/site/Donation2?mfc_pref=T&7755.donation=form1&idb=1561290975&df_id=7755&DONATION_LEVEL_ID_SELECTED=1&mfc_pref=T

Nature Conservancy,

https://preserve.nature.org/page/81523/donate/1?locale=en-US

Memorial Reflections

by James H, Henry II, Feb 15, 2026

Welcoming Remarks

Thank you for joining in the Celebration of life in honor of our father. It’s certainly fitting to remember Dad here at his church home. Dad told my sister Susan that after 9/11 he felt badly about the amount of broad anti-Arab sentiment in our country. He heard a panel of faith leaders talking about this on a local broadcast. One of them was Rev. Dr. Steve Locke, a former pastor here. Dad really appreciated his inclusive words, and this experience motivated him to join First Presbyterian. He felt comfortable here, and he was delighted when Pastor Kim followed in this same vein when Pastor Steve retired.

Character

My sisters and I have had some time to reflect on Dad’s life the past few weeks. I’ll share a few of those memories. There are a handful of words that come to mind that describe him: Caring, resilient, kind, quiet, consistent, hard-working, disciplined, faithful and funny Each of you may have others, but those themes came out in our memories of Dad.

Early Adult Life & Career

Susan has just described the early years of Dad’s life. I don’t remember very much, and some of it was before I was born, but Dad shared some of his memories with me in a Story of My Life book that he had written. A resounding theme was how much he loved and respected his parents. He carried this love for his parents throughout his life. Regarding Dad’s early career at GM, he shared many stories about the men he worked for. He stayed in occasional contact with a few of them during his life. My impression is Dad had some swagger in his early career, which sounds uncharacteristic to us today; for example, GM didn't like it when he brought an Italian Fiat to work!

California Family Life When We Were Young

I’m told we had many adventures on that cross-country journey from Detroit to San Diego, including one harrowing incident when sister Lynn held on to an open car door as we drove around a winding canyon road. When we finally made it to California, we were all excited to see the Pacific Ocean for the first time, and Mom and Dad were probably relieved just to get out of the car! Dad seemed to enjoy family life in CA. Our parents bought a new home in Clairemont Mesa and paid $5000 for the house, which seemed like quite a stretch at the time. Dad had us all drop river pebbles into concrete to make the entryway more interesting, a fun project that still graces the house on Acuna Street. (The house is probably worth $1.5M today). He traded the Fiat, which died from the long trip, for a Nash Rambler. He enjoyed taking us on camping trips in that car. But one time on the way back from Big Bear, the brakes went out coming down the mountain in the snow. Fortunately, Dad not only loved cars, but was a good driver. And we all survived!

Arizona Family Life

In Arizona, Dad had chores for the kids inside and outside the house, mowing the grass (with that horrible push mower), picking peaches (with worms) and trimming the oleanders (which were poisonous). We all learned about work, but he also taught us to play…badminton, croquet (until one of my sisters hit another one with a mallet) and playing catch. I always thought he quit too soon with playing catch, but later understood as a parent. He was a stickler for manners, which made some dinners not so pleasant, but we all learned the important rules of etiquette which served us well in our adult years. We all memorized the Goops poem about ill-mannered kids. He insisted we send thank-you notes for gifts we received. At bedtime, he’d say, “Night night, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite.” As teenagers, his advice was simple and accurate: “Nothing good happens after midnight!” I think Dad was obsessed with Arizona Highways magazine. We would go on Sunday drives in his little Corvair convertible, seemingly all over the state (but probably only 30-40 miles). While he enjoyed his young family, we probably created a ton of stress and pressure on him. Dad had his share of personal and professional ups and downs, but in his quiet, introverted way, he internalized life’s challenges and kept moving forward to fulfill his responsibilities.

Parenting by Example

Dad worked a lot of very long, late hours as a taxi driver when we moved back to San Diego. He worked hard through many phases of his life to keep a roof over our heads. I always respected him for that. By his example, he taught us to be independent and self-sufficient. But he continued to also parent in his quiet way. Even though he worked a lot, he seemed to know when we were up to no good, and he would find a way to let us know that he knew. His parenting continued after we were adults. He seemed to know what each of us needed. For me, I remember a lesson in humility, when I told him about a new work assignment, and he said, “Sounds like you got demoted.” I was offended and immediately tried to explain myself. Looking back, I think he was reminding me not to measure my success by titles or appearances. Dad and I reconnected after his father died, and would have long discussions about taxes, the stock market and companies whose shares he owned. I was amazed at his detailed knowledge from reading the news and annual reports.

Resilience

He showed incredible resilience in his career changes, from being a technical illustrator to driving a taxi, and then to his retirement years managing investments and volunteering at the San Diego Auto Museum. He also showed resilience with his health challenges, including recovering from a violent crime, pneumonia, a broken leg, and many other things. We used to joke that he had nine lives, like a cat ~ and he used all of them.

Marriage

Dad loved our mom, and cared for her in her failing health. I know he missed her after she passed, 26 years ago.

Old Age

Dad read cards that we sent him over and over, and he loved the phone calls and visits from his grandkids and great-grandkids. Given his very quiet nature, you may not have known what the visit or call meant to him; but we could tell from the way he talked about those visits later. In his later years Dad lived simply, and found comfort in routines ~ meals and TV shows, chair yoga (first in-person at the local YMCA, and later online with Body & Brain), daily PT exercise, and Sunday church services. He tracked family birthdays, sent cards, looked at pictures, and saw his family when he could. It was amazing to me to see how gracefully Dad handled his declining health in the last decade. He seldom complained when he was in pain. His sense of humor came through at the oddest times, Susan became his primary companion and roommate, with heavy support from nurse Lynn and our health care professionals. Ann was always effusive in her love and affection. Lynn and her husband Marty made sure Dad was always included in family gatherings and holidays, which he loved. In my last visits with Dad, he always seemed grateful for our time together.

A Life Well-Lived

Dad’s life was defined by faith and commitment. He was steady and humble rather than flashy, guided by values more than impulses. I’m sure his parents would be proud of him for a life well-lived, and we certainly are too. We will miss his words of wisdom, his blue eyes and how he smiled. As my sister Lynn would tell him, “You’re my favorite Dad. I love you very much.”