James T. Ayers

AYERS, SR., JAMES THOMAS James T. Ayers, Sr., 86, of Aurora, passed away Tuesday, April 15, 2008. He was preceded in death by his parents, James T. and Mattie Ayers. He is survived by his wife; Mary K Ayers, son; James T. (Kay) Ayers, five daughters; Kerry (David) Cain, Maureen (David) Browne, Martha Susan (Mike) Silva, Mariam (Omar) Frawan, and Katherine (Scott) Heron, 20 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. The Mass of Christian Burial will be held Friday, April 18, at 10:30AM at St. Therese Catholic Church, 1243 Kingston Street, Aurora. Burial to follow on Monday, April 21, at 11:00AM at Ft. Logan National Cemetery, staging area ""C"". Share condolences at HoranCares.com. The family is requesting donations in lieu of flowers to Comitis Crisis Center at 2178 Victor Street, Aurora, CO 80045, (303) 341-9160. ""Judge"" Ayers was born October 5, 1921 in Birmingham, Alabama. He served in the US Navy from 1942 to 1945, and enrolled at Denver University in 1946 where he met Mary K. Porter, a fellow student. They were married March 16, 1947. He graduated from the DU Law School in 1950, and moved his law practice to Aurora in 1954. Both he and Mary K were active at St. Therese Parish, Aurora, and raised 6 children. In 1960 he was appointed as a Justice of the Peace (""JP"") for the 18th Judicial District in Arapahoe County. He was the first attorney to become a JP in Colorado. In 1964, he was appointed Assistant Municipal Judge for the City of Aurora and became Chief Judge in 1966. He established the Aurora Municipal court as the first municipal court of record in the state in 1970. In January 1978, he was appointed Judicial Administrator in addition to Presiding Judge. In 1978, he supervised the building and move to the new Aurora municipal court facilities. He retired from full-time service in December 1986.