James Edward Bolding

James “Jim” Edward Bolding passed away on April 20, 2025 at the age of 70. Jim was born on March 3, 1955 in Petersburg, VA into the family of the late William and Penny Bolding. In addition to his parents, he was sadly preceded in death by his younger sister, Donna Bolding Fiala. Jim’s legacy will forever live on in the hearts of those who survived him including his wife of 40 years, Marsha; two daughters, Carrie (PJ) and Brenn; two brothers David (Jill) and Steve (Carol); two grandchildren, Cayson and Livvy; and many other loving family members and friends.

Graduating from Ragsdale High School in 1973, he then attended East Carolina University from 1973-1977 on a full scholarship to play football. Although Jim excelled at many sports, his passion was playing football at ECU. A four-year starter playing defensive back, he is a two time All-American, All Southern Conference, and was inducted into the ECU Hall of Fame in 1995. Jim still holds the record at ECU for the highest number of career interceptions (22). He also served on the ECU Board of Visitors and the Hall of Fame Committee. Many times, Jim would say that he loved giving back to the Pirates because they gave him a chance to play football while wearing Purple and Gold. He continued to share his passion for football as an assistant coach at Cary High School and Apex Friendship High School. His career was spent in Telecommunications and Agriculture.

Jim, known to many as “Jimmy, Jimmer, JB, Mouse”, was a kind, humble man with the highest sense of integrity. He treated everyone he met with respect and had a great sense of humor. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend who loved his family. He instilled the values of family, respect, work ethic, and commitment into his daughters.

A perfect day for Jim would include hanging out with his brothers and friends, fishing, watching football and hockey, competing at boot camp and attending an ECU athletic event.

Jim was a member of First United Methodist Church of Cary, NC, where a service will be held on Wednesday, May 07, 2025 at 1:00 p.m.

The family would like to extend its sincerest thanks to the staff at The Retreat of Cary, who provided him with excellent care and dignity during his last few months of life.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Jim Bolding Football Scholarship Endowment. This endowment will help fund recruitment and support student-athletes in the football program at ECU. Please include a memo specifying that your donation is being made to the said endowment. Donations should be mailed to:

ECU Pirate Club, 304 Ward Sport Medicine Building, Mail Stop 158, Greenville, NC 27858.

Memorial tributes and messages of sympathy can be left by clicking the "Add a Memory" box below. Brown Wynne of Cary is honored to serve the Bolding family.