Jim was born in Norfolk, Virginia, on September 19, 1939, to Thomas Jefferson (T.J.) and Elizabeth Cubbage (Bessie) Wood. He graduated from Murphy High School in 1957 and attended the University of Alabama, earning a B.S. degree in 1961. He went on to graduate from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1962 and was admitted to practice in the State of Alabama that year.
Jim married Mary Olive Lyle on December 10, 1966, at All Saints Episcopal Church in Mobile. He practiced law with Simon, Wood & Crane from 1964 until his appointment as Circuit Court Judge in 1999. He served on the bench until his retirement in 2012. As a young man he was elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 1966 and served for eight years.
He also served his country as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army in Korea, was discharged as a 1st Lieutenant in the Quartermaster Corps, and later held the rank of Captain in the U.S. Army Reserves.
A devoted member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Jim was also active in the Mobile Bar Association, the Alabama Bar Association, and numerous civic and social organizations, including mystic societies and Kappa Sigma fraternity.
Jim was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Mary Olive Wood; his parents, T.J. and Bessie Wood; and his sister, Betty Wood Stacey.
He is survived by his children, Lucy Wood Foley (Chris) and Thomas Jefferson Wood (Eileen); his brother, Ernest Cubbage Wood; and his grandchildren, Lyle James Foley and Cooke Edward Foley.
Visitation will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 31, at Radney Funeral Home, with funeral services immediately following at 11:00 a.m., officiated by clergy from St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Burial will follow at Magnolia Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Mobile Bar Foundation.
