James D Waters Jr.

On Mother’s Day in 1972 fate put Jim and his loving wife together at the same local convenience store. Jim was there to get flowers for his mom and Taffee was there to get the newspaper because the dog ate the morning copy. Taffee thought the flowers in his car were so beautiful and had to ask him what they were for. She knew that he had to be a caring man and him with flowers on Mother’s Day showed that. They were married less than one year later on April 27, 1973. They had a fruitful and happy marriage.

In 1964, Jim graduated from Terry Parker High School and immediately went into the workforce with Southern Bell (BellSouth, AT&T). He worked hard for his family and was successful at Southern Bell, making a name for himself in the telecommunications industry. He retired after thirty-four years at the age of fifty-two in 1998. He then joined Lucent Technologies as a contractor for eleven years. At Lucent he worked with their sales team to meet AT&T’s high expectations as he knew the ins and outs of AT&T. He retired for the final time in 2009, using his time after retirement to travel and spend time with his family.

In Jim’s free time he enjoyed playing golf, travelling, creating experiences for his whole family, and so much more. There were fond stories told about his golfing experience and all the celebrities he was able to meet at golf tournaments, such as the Bryant Gumbel Annual Tournament. Jim absolutely adored his grandsons and did everything he could with them. The most important thing to Jim was his family and putting them first above all else. He wanted to make sure his wife, sons, and grandsons had the opportunity to do what they wanted. His favorite trips were taking his grandsons to Disney World, where he saw their eyes light up. Jim enjoyed his life thoroughly and always made the most out of the opportunities that presented themselves.

Jim is preceded in death by his mother Juanita, father Dewain, and sister Angie. Jim is survived by his wife, Taffee Waters, sons Matthew (Shelly) Waters and Brian (Ginger) Waters, grandsons Rylan, Mason, and Jaxson Waters, and sister-in-law Cindy (Buddy) Ingram. He leaves behind many loving aunts, cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Jim was a loving and caring husband, father, grandfather, and friend to many. Jim was full of life, full of strength, and full of love.

The family kindly asks, in lieu of flowers, to consider making a donation in Jim’s name to the American Cancer Society.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on Sunday, March 26, 2023 at 1:00pm at HM Patterson Canton Hill Funeral Home, 1157 Old Canton Rd, Marietta, Georgia 30068.