Born on August 27, 1936 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Jim was the son of James Joseph Duhig, Sr. and Evelyn Olga Lazorik Duhig. A highlight of Jim’s childhood was a year he spent in Japan, where his father worked in 1949 following World War II, a year of adventure that Jim spoke of fondly throughout his life. On their return to the United States, the family resided in Metuchen, New Jersey (now known as Edison, New Jersey) before moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1953. Jim completed his final year of high school and graduated from Murphy High School in Atlanta.
In 1954, Jim enrolled at the Georgia Institute of Technology while also participating in the Engineering Cooperative Trainee program with the Lockheed Corporation. While at Georgia Tech, Jim was a member of the gymnastics team and was elected to Pi Tau Sigma, the International Honor Society for Mechanical Engineers. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech in 1959 and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1963, also from Georgia Tech. Jim was always very proud of his alma mater and was a lifelong Yellow Jackets supporter.
During his college years, Jim met the love of his life, Kay Elizabeth Hudgins, and the couple married in 1958. They started a family, which grew to include eight children. To accommodate his growing family, Jim used his engineering skills and architectural imagination to design and build a distinctive house on a large lot in the Branches neighborhood in Sandy Springs. The family moved into their new home in 1968, and Jim lived in this home and hosted family gatherings there until his death.
Beginning with his time in the engineering co-op program, Jim had a distinguished 40-year career at Lockheed as an aeronautical engineer, contributing to the engineering of military aircraft such as the C-141 Starlifter, the C-5 Galaxy, and the YF-22 Raptor. He served as an elected officer of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Atlanta section. Following his retirement from Lockheed in the mid-1990s, Jim returned to Georgia Tech to take a leadership role at the Electronic Commerce Resource Center, where he assisted small and medium-sized businesses entering the emerging e-commerce economy.
Jim was an early parishioner of St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church in Sandy Springs, joining the church in 1966 and worshipping there until his death. He participated in Nocturnal Adoration at St. Jude for nearly 50 years, serving as a leader for many of those years. He was also active in the parish Men’s Club and served as a Sunday school teacher. Jim and Kay enjoyed taking part in activities with the Mature Catholic Adults Together (MCATs) group at St. Jude. All eight of Jim’s children attended St. Jude the Apostle Catholic School.
In his retirement, Jim was absorbed by researching family genealogy, creating detailed genealogy charts for both his and Kay’s sides of the family. He also enjoyed having more time to spend with his grandchildren. In 2006, Jim, Kay, and two of their daughters traveled to Italy, where Jim and Kay were honored to meet Pope Benedict XVI at a mass at the Vatican.
Jim was a loving and tireless caregiver for Kay in the years leading up to her death in 2012. In 2017, he fulfilled a lifelong desire to visit the Holy Land, travelling with a group of fellow Catholics from the Atlanta area.
Jim was preceded in death by his beloved wife Kay, his brother Richard, and his mother and father. He is survived by all of his children – Maryanne Siek and husband Stephen Siek, Beth Radke and husband Brian Radke, Jim Duhig and wife Anne Duhig, Joe Duhig and wife Phatcharida Duhig, Susan Duhig, Kathy Usher and husband Jonathan Usher, Amy Duhig, and John Duhig and wife Tracy Duhig. He is also survived by 13 grandchildren, as well as his brother Scott Duhig and Scott’s son Nicholas Duhig.
A funeral service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 10, 2018 at St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church, 705 Spalding Drive, Sandy Springs, GA 30328. The family will hold a visitation on Tuesday, October 9, 2018 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Sandy Springs Chapel, 136 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs, Georgia 30328. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in memory of James Duhig be made to the Saint Jude Saint Vincent De Paul Society at the Saint Jude Parish Office, 7171 Glenridge Drive, Sandy Springs, GA 30328.
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