James Paul Wolf

The sons and extended family of James Paul Wolf with much sorrow acknowledge that he succumbed to natural causes and died on September 25, 2015 in Winter Haven, FL at age 91. He had most recently spent an extended time at Spring Lake Rehab Hospital, away from his assisted living home in Lake Wales, FL. For those who knew him well, be assured that he remained a profile in determination and strong will to the end. He had the grit and perseverance to withstand a staggering amount of physical challenges in the final several years of his life and did so with a calm dignity that was not a surprise to those that knew him.

James (Jim to most, yielding Jimmy to a very select few like Del Shaw) was born March 09, 1924 in Springfield, Ohio, the first child of Earl Wilson Wolf and Edna Ellen Elizabeth (Scheerschmidt) Wolf. He is preceded in death by brother, John (Jack) Wendle Wolf and his wife Kathryn (Dean) Wolf, and most recently, brother-in-law Cyrus Circle. He is survived by sister Marlys Floy (Wolf) Circle, and sister Mary Linda (Wolf) Lockwood and her husband Thomas Lockwood. The last two years were especially challenging as his beloved wife of over fifty years Grace Irene (Early) Wolf preceded him in death, an outcome he simply had not anticipated nor fully reconciled. He was also preceded in death by his sons’ natural mother Nelva Lois (Ritter) Wolf that left him widowed at age 29 with three young children. As he would repeatedly in his life, he persevered on the back of his faith and resiliency.

Jim graduated from Springfield High School and then enlisted in the US Navy in 1942. Prior to entering active service he attended Western Michigan College and the U. of Iowa. He took Navy flight training in Pensacola, FL and was on active duty from Feb 1943 to Nov 1945, serving in the South Pacific primarily from the USS Hornet. As a civilian he worked on aircraft at Wright Patterson AF Base in Dayton, OH, worked briefly at the Army Depot in Columbus, OH and finally at Fort Benning in Columbus, GA. During the latter position he also committed to a civilian tour of duty in Vietnam, 1968-1970, in the capacity of technical assistance to an Army helicopter unit. His sense of duty prevailed over all other arguments to not serve in another combat zone.

He was active in the Navy reserve until 1964 and was known to occasionally buzz the rural family residence at less than sanctioned altitude (as in, we could see the pilot grinning); not every farmer in Clark County was humored. He retired as Commander in the US Navy and having lived in Florida for over 40 years chose to be interred (and preceded by Grace) at the Florida National Cemetery.
After retiring from civil service in 1972 and with a loving prompt from Del and Rheba (Ritter) Shaw, Jim and Grace moved near Lake Wales, FL and Jim managed the community of Indian Lake Estates for over ten years where they lived and forged many close friendships with neighbors and as always, through their church. They gladly hosted many friends and relatives through the years on their visits to Florida. And Jim fished, a lot. And played golf, a lot, and fished some more. Fishing was a passion shared with his father and brother and then his children, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and many others.

Jim and Grace eventually moved to Winter Haven, embraced a new set of friends and neighbors while staying in touch with all others, then moved back to Lake Wales to Waters Edge senior community, their final home together. No matter the location he was essentially everyone’s good neighbor or reliable friend through his generosity, humility and selflessness. To all of us he was exemplary of being calm, reasoned and resilient.

He was steady and grounded and not one to embrace fads or lame trends. And, he was not a slave to fashion - he liked his trousers wide so he could make a change without taking his shoes off; he liked the trousers cuffed so he had a place to store and deposit extra tooth picks; he liked a good looking tie as long as it stayed in the closet until Sunday morning; he liked roomy shirts that didn’t bind a golf swing or a fishing cast; and, he had no idea when his daily attire was over qualified for the rag pile. And, being very mechanically-inclined, he was famously a fix-it guy for just about anything and undeterred by initial failure, smashed fingers, minor electrocutions, other collateral damage, or Grace’s admonishments to give it a rest.

Jim is also survived by sons Michael Lynn Wolf (widowed from Kathy Moore Wolf), Stephen Lee Wolf (and wife Ellen Thompson Wolf), John Mark Wolf (and wife Lynda J. Calkin), 8 grandchildren, 11 great-children, numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews. He especially was buoyed in the more recent years by the love and kindness of niece Ellen Loser Burke (Grace’s niece) and husband Brian, the dear friends from Winter Haven Mary Ellen and Tom Adlam, the kind neighbors at Waters Edge, and Father Timothy Shaw’s many visits.

A private service will held on October 09, 2015 at the Florida National Cemetery near Bushnell. The family is grateful to have cousin Tim Shaw, retired rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church of Winter Haven, officiate. Anyone that would like to honor Jim with a memorial contribution is encouraged to consider Lake Wales Care Center (140 E. Park Ave., Lake Wales 33853), supported for many years by Jim and Grace, or First Presbyterian Church (16 North 3rd St., Lake Wales 33853) where he last attended services regularly.