James Edwards

Waynesville, James Roy "Jim" Edwards, 92, entered into eternal life on Monday, August 29, 2016 at Autumn Care of Waynesville following a long illness. He was born in Barnardsville, Buncombe County, North Carolina on September 29, 1923, the son of Barnard Lee and Cleopatra Cleveland Bartlett Edwards. After graduating from Barnardsville High School in 1941, he entered Berea College in Berea, Kentucky, to pursue an agricultural curriculum. James' college career was interrupted by the United States' entry into the Second World War. He was called to active duty in early 1943 and underwent training to become an air gunner and radio operator on B-24 Liberator heavy bombers. His crew was deployed to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations and assigned to the 717th Squadron, 449th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15th Army Air Force. Flying from a base at Grottaglie, Italy, he participated in air strikes against the Axis war machine in Italy, France, Germany, Romania, Bulgaria, and the Balkans. He was wounded by anti-aircraft fire during one of the last American raids on the oil refineries at Ploiesti, Romania in August of 1944, for which he was awarded the Purple Heart Medal. After recovering from his wounds, he returned to duty and finished his mission quota, receiving the Air Medal with three bronze Oak Leaves and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with five battle stars. Following his honorable discharge from the Army, James returned to Berea to complete a Bachelor of Science degree, which was awarded in 1948. There he met June Settle of West Virginia, to whom he married on August 10, 1947. Following a brief stint of teaching veteran's school in his hometown, he enrolled at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, from which he received the degree of Master of Science in Animal Science. In 1953, James began work as a supervisor of the dairy at the Mountain Experiment Station (now the Mountain Research Station, but still known locally as the "Test Farm"). Ten years later, he was promoted to Superintendent of the Station, in which capacity he served for twenty-five years. His tenure there was among the factors that led to his induction into the Western North Carolina Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2002. He was active for decades in the Waynesville Lions Club, where he served in several official capacities, including its presidency. Following his retirement in 1988, he remained active in a number of pursuits, including wildflower photography and the construction of a segment of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along the Haywood-Jackson County line. He served for several years as a member of the board of the Waynesville Housing Authority. He was a faithful member of First United Methodist Church of Waynesville, and served for several years on its Administrative Board. James was preceded in death by his parents and by an infant son, Douglas. He is survived by his beloved wife of 69 years, June Elise Settle Edwards; a son, Samuel Edwards (Kay) of Waynesville; a daughter, Katharine (Pete) Lowery, of Bostic; a brother, Robert Edwards (Dorothy) of Clemson, South Carolina; three grandsons; David Edwards, Cory Lowery and Joel Lowery; one granddaughter, Rachel Edwards; and three great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday September 2, 2016 at First United Methodist Church, Waynesville with Reverend Sanford L. Giles, Jr. officiating. Burial will follow at Garrett-Hillcrest Memorial Park. The family will receive friends from 10:00 a.m. until service time at the church. In lieu of flowers, the family ask that memorial gifts be made to First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 838, Waynesville, NC 28786; Berea College, 101 Chestnut Street, Berea, Kentucky 40403; Haywood Healthcare Foundation, (Hospice in memo line of check to apply funds to Hospice) c/o The Homestead, 127 Sunset Ridge Road, Clyde, NC 28721 or a charity of the donor's choice.

Previous Events