James D. King's Obituary
James D. King (Jim), a resident of Lorain and Amherst for nearly 60 years, died peacefully, surrounded by his family, on January 3 in Gainesville, GA after suffering a stroke. He was 88.
Jim moved to Lorain in 1955 shortly after his graduation from Betsy Layne High School in Pikeville, Kentucky. Three years later, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and proudly served four years, including time in Korea. He returned to Lorain after his discharge and, after only six months of courtship, married the late Rosemarie Maderia, the one and only love of his life.
After a 30-year career, he retired from the Ford Motor Company and joined forces with Rosie in business. Together, they enjoyed great success selling real estate throughout Lorain County for Realty One and then Howard Hanna. He flew solo after Rosie’s death in 2006 and continued selling real estate until 2018 when he was sidelined by a sudden illness at the age of 82. After nearly three months of hospitalization at The Ohio State University Medical Center, he relocated to Sunset, South Carolina in 2019 and lived with his oldest son, Jim, and his wife Kay. Despite losing much of his independence, he thrived during those final five years, spending his days overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains and watching no fewer than 100 Cleveland Guardians games each summer.
Besides his love of Cleveland baseball and Kentucky Wildcat basketball, Jim was once an avid fisherman and hunter, making an annual pilgrimage with family members to South Dakota to hunt pheasant. It was being a grandfather, however, that brought him the most joy. A phone call or visit from any of his seven grandkids, who knew him as “Pap,” would bring an instant smile to his face and re-energize him for days.
Born in Amba, Kentucky on September 2, 1936, to the late Sam and Dell King, Jim never forgot his roots despite living in Lorain County for nearly his entire adult life. When asked by a hospital nurse just days before his death where he was from, he proudly responded, “Kentucky.” It is fitting that he will be interred wearing a Kentucky Wildcat sweatshirt.
Jim is survived by children, Jim (Kay Mason), of Sunset, SC, Jeff (Carol Skipper), of Apex, NC and Denise Bell (Brian), of Toccoa, GA. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Stephen (Mary) and Spencer (Shelby) King of Atlanta, Bryson and Garrett King of Apex, NC, Lexi (Adam) Mancini of Pittsboro, NC, Grayson Bell of Cincinnati, and Ainsley Bell of Kent. He leaves two great grandchildren, Mason and Olivia King, of Atlanta. He is also survived by his brother Roy King of California and sisters Phyllis Lawson of Oberlin and Eileen Arena of Tennessee.
He was proceeded in death by his wife of 44 years, his parents, and brothers, Charles and Paul King.
The family will receive friends from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. on Friday, January 17, 2025 at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 200 St. Joseph Drive, Amherst, where Jim was a former parishioner and Eucharistic minister. A mass of Christian burial will begin at 11:15, officiated by the Rev. Timothy J. O’Connor, Pastor. Entombment will follow in the mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery in Lorain.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Hospice of Northeast Georgia Medical Center at https://www.nghs.com/foundation/giving
Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Dovin and Reber Jones Funeral & Cremation Center. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.dovinreberjones.com
What’s your fondest memory of James?
What’s a lesson you learned from James?
Share a story where James' kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with James you’ll never forget.
How did James make you smile?
