James Polk King, Ill of Gadsden, Alabama died peacefully on Thursday, June 2, 2022. He was born May 12, 1929, in Gadsden and was the son of Leslie Cooper King, Sr and Gladys Angle King. He was married to Shirley Fadely King for 48 years and had four children: Cecile King Striplin (Ken), Jerry Craig King (Cindy), the late James Scott King (Kim) and Christie King Ray (Mike). He is also survived by eight grandchildren: Caley King Newberry (Jonathan), Jared Craig King, Eleanor Striplin Brindle (Patrick), Sylas King, James Kennedy Striplin, James Polk King IV, Shelby King Jayne (Christopher) and Reagan Michelle King. He welcomed John Cooper Brindle, his only great grandchild in 2021. Mr. King is also survived by his sister Katherine King Gielle (Fred) and numerous nieces and nephews.
Mr. King was the 3rd generation owner of J.P. King Auction Company which he passed on to his children upon his retirement in 1980. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Alabama Auctioneers Association in 1998. He had a lifelong passion for flying cub airplanes and all things aviation. He made many flights carrying grandchildren to and from his house. He considered himself a gentleman farmer and loved the solitude of bush-hogging his land. Mr. King was a charter and lifelong member of Rainbow Drive Church of Christ.
Funeral services will be held at 1:00PM on Monday, June 6, 2022, at Collier-Butler Funeral Home in Gadsden, AL. A private interment will follow the service. The family will accept friends from 11:00AM until the hour of the service at the funeral home.
In lieu of flowers, donations made by made to Rainbow Omega Home at rainbowomega.org and the National Auctioneers Foundation at auctioneersfoundation.org.
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