Shirley James

Shirley Pauline James passed away peacefully January 12, 2013 at the Holly Creek Retirement Community in Centennial, CO. She was preceded in death by her husband and best friend, Glennon James on November 29, 2012. She is survived by her sister, May Fitzsimmons of St. Louis, MO, and her two daughters, Clare Mathe of Highlands Ranch, CO and Cathy James of Atlanta, GA, son-in-law Richard Mathe, and granddaughters Alyssa Mathe of Durham, NC and Laura Mathe of Stanford, CA. Shirley was born and raised in St. Louis, MO, the younger daughter of Henry and Clara Suren. She graduated from Xavier High School on D Day, 1944. Her academic prowess propelled her to St. Louis University, where she first met Glenn. Following graduation with a B.S. degree in accounting, she worked in the billing department in the regional power company. In 1962, the family was transferred to Poughkeepsie, NY, then in 1965 to Pittsburgh, PA. In search of a warmer climate and less hectic lifestyle, Glenn and Shirley moved to Asheville, NC in 1973. For the next 32 years Glenn and Shirley enjoyed the lush green landscape and the beauty of western North Carolina. There, Shirley worked at the Fugazy Travel Agency where she learned of faraway places and organized travel for clients and friends. After Glenn retired from IBM in 1998, Shirley and he split their retirement between Ashville and their vacation home in Hilton Head, SC, while traveling extensively worldwide. Wishing to be closer to family, they relocated in 2005 to the Holly Creek Retirement Community in Centennial, CO. Shirley's greatest joy came from her devoted role as a loving mother and grandmother. She was an avid reader and through weekly trips to the library, she shared with her daughters her love of literature. She devoted many hours as volunteer coordinator in the Ashville Public Library system. Shirley expressed her personality best through her creative pursuits of painting, writing, and crafting. Over her lifetime she graced their homes with her artwork, wrote stories of her childhood summer home on the Merrimac River, and sewed outfits for her daughters and their dolls, along with constructing draperies and reupholstering furniture. Reflecting her love of water, she drove Clare and Cathy to innumerable early morning swim lessons. One of her daughters' fondest memories is of Mom sitting in a low chair at the beach surfs edge reading a book. A woman devoted to her faith, Shirley taught Sunday school for many years to middle school children. Later in life, at Holly Creek, Shirley assisted fellow residents in the Toys for God's Kids project. Over five years they produced and distributed 45, 000 small wooden cars to underprivileged children throughout the world. Shirley was a passionate and strong-willed woman who took great pride in seeing those attributes expressed in her daughters and granddaughters. In her memory, donations can be sent to the Friends of Holly Creek, attn: Sandy Roe, James Memorial, 5500 East Peakview Ave., Centennial, CO 80121. A memorial Mass will be held on Friday, February 15, 2013 at 10:00am at St. Francis Xavier College Church Chapel, 3628 Lindell Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri 63108. Interment will follow at Resurrection Cemetery, 6901 Mackenzie Road in St. Louis, Missouri 63123. Please share your memories of Shirley and condolences with her family by signing the guestbook below.