James Earl Redfield, 87, went to his heavenly home on December 27, 2017.
Jim was born to the late S.D. and Hope Redfield on December 1, 1930 in Dallas, Texas and moved to Nacogdoches in 1945. Jim graduated number one in his class from Nacogdoches High School in 1947. He continued his education at Stephen F Austin State University graduating in 1950 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, again graduating number one in his class. From there he attended Southern Methodist University where he earned an MBA in 1951 and then graduated from the University of Texas in 1960 with a Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration.
He became a Certified Public Accountant in 1954 and joined his father in a local accounting firm where he continued to practice for over 50 years. He also loved teaching and was able to fulfill that love by teaching accounting classes at SFA over the years.
Jim accepted Christ at the age of nine. He was a long-time member of First Baptist Church, and later in life of Calvary Baptist Church. He served faithfully on committees, was a deacon for many years and loved teaching Sunday school. He was considered a bible scholar by many and loved reading and studying the book of Revelation, leading numerous bible studies on the subject during his life.
Jim married Maurine Lester of Lufkin in 1958 and had 40 wonderful years together before Maurine passed in 1998. Jim married Sue Box of Nacogdoches in 2000 and she remained a loving and devoted wife until his death.
Jim served in many leadership positions in Nacogdoches during his life including the Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Club, Nacogdoches County Hospital Board, and Rotary International. His proudest accomplishment was the instrumental role he played in the formation of Nacogdoches Medical Center Hospital serving as its first board chairman.
Jim inherited a love of travel from his parents and spent every June driving his family to all of the lower 48 states and Canada. He fulfilled his wish to visit all 50 states with his family and then traveled to five of the seven continents, always documenting his travels through his love of photography to share with friends and family. Later in life he enjoyed visiting Branson, Missouri with Sue. Those who knew Jim best knew of his love for fine food. He spent many hours researching the best restaurants to visit during his travels. If you ever needed to know where to eat, he was your resource long before Yelp or TripAdvisor!
Jim is survived by his wife, Sue; children Dr. James Redfield, Jr., Patricia Jones and husband Ricky, J.D. Redfield and wife Jana, all of Nacogdoches as well as step-son David Box and wife Cindy of Huntington; grandchildren Taylor Jones and wife Emily of Jasper, James Redfield, III of Washington, D.C., Stephen Jones and wife Hannah of Waco, Carley Redfield of Baytown, Cori Redfield of Nacogdoches, Samuel Jones of Nacogdoches, and Cawren Redfield of Nacogdoches; great-grandchildren Merit and Eva Jones of Jasper.
Visitation is set for 2:00 P.M. Friday, December 29, 2017, with services to follow at 3:30 P.M. at Cason Monk-Metcalf Sunset Chapel in Nacogdoches. Pallbearers will be Taylor Jones, James Redfield, III, Stephen Jones, Samuel Jones, Eli Box, John Wood and Chad Wood.
Visit www.CasonMonk-Metcalf.com to offer memories and condolences.
Memorials may be offered to Calvary Baptist Church, 3732 NE Stallings Drive, Nacogdoches, TX 75965-8736. Services are under the direction of Cason Monk-Metcalf Funeral Directors, 5400 North Street, Nacogdoches.
