James Aldridge Jr.

James Aldridge, Jr., was born in Tampa, Florida on March 6, 1928, to James, Sr., and Dorothy Aldridge. He lived in Tampa and Ybor City with his parents and sister Gertrude, helping the family make ends meet working as a shoe shine attendant in a local hotel. At 17, he decided to join the son of a neighbor who'd gotten a job working the railroads, working on weekly trips from Miami to New York City for several years before being drafted into the Army and serving in the occupying forces of post-World War II Germany. After his discharge, he moved back to Washington, D.C., where he met Muriel Hazel in 1953. They married in 1955, and had three children–Donna, Chris and David. He took a job as a mailman in the early '60s and spent more than two decades delivering mail, then also working as a cashier at local grocery stores. After Mom's death, Dad met and married Regina Robinson, with whom he was married more than 30 years, and whom he loved greatly. Dad was the family patriarch, who loved Thanksgivings at Hogate's, playing numbers with folks in the neighborhood, taking power walks at PG Plaza with his crew, and always having a kind word and a gentle touch to any who needed it.

Our Mufasa is at rest. Long Live the King.