James E Edwards

James Ervin Edwards, Age 79 of Lebanon, passed away at home Sunday, May 28, 2017. He was known to some as “Ervin” or “Jim” and to his family as “Ed”. Mr. Edwards was preceded in death by his wife, Marsha Ruth. He is survived by his son, Jay Edwards (wife, Jeri Edwards) of Stedman, NC; daughter, Tracy Light (husband, Leo Light) of Lavergne, TN ; sons, Johnny Edwards of Lebanon, TN and Jeff Edwards of Virginia; his 5 grandchildren, Leanne Geerts of Lavergne, TN, Melissa Lester(husband, Rance Lester) of Murfreesboro, TN ,Nikki Humbert of Smyrna, TN, Coty Edwards of Alabama and Meagan Copley of Springfield, TN. He is also survived by 8 great grandchildren, Dylan and Austyn Geerts, Cheyenne, Cullen and Cage Lester, Arianna Humbert and Forrest Mitchell, Rowen Lashbrook and his bonus grandchild, Erin Layton.

Mr. Edwards attended Victory Baptist Church, served in the U.S. Air Force from 1954 to 1959 as an air traffic control specialist.

After the USAF, he retired from the Federal Aviation Administration with 33 years of service as an air traffic controller and later the SATCS of BNA Flight Services where he received numerous awards and acknowledgements for his exceptional work including his role during the 1st Annual 1979 Tullahoma EAA Air Show among many other achievements. Mr. Edwards grew up in Goldsboro, NC the son of a sharecropper, James Ennis Edwards and Agnes Rose Edwards. He moved his family as his advanced in his career with the F.A.A. from Atlanta, GA to Rocky Mount, NC to Florence, SC to Jacksonville, FL and lastly, to Mt. Juliet, TN before retiring to Lebanon, TN.

He loved hunting, fishing, gardening always sharing his produce with family and friends. He enjoyed riding his farm tractors and with his adventurous side, riding his scooters around town. He loved vacationing with family on the Emerald Coast of North Carolina and when possible, spent his winters in an RV park in Arcadia, FL.

He and Marsha were married over 40 years and enjoyed camping with family or traveling. Upon Jim’s retirement, they spent 6 weeks traveling by truck camper to Alaska exploring the United States and Canada along the way. Spending time with his large family was by far what he enjoyed the most. He used to say he could watch the little ones play forever and it always put a smile on his face.

After Marsha’s passing, he became more involved with the Lebanon Senior Citizens Center and developed a special relationship with Faye Redden and her family. Together they enjoyed gardening, exploring, sharing meals and church together. Faye and Jim’s families often joined together for special occasions as Faye. Jim and Faye’s brother, James Page, became close friends spending countless hours solving the world’s problems at Hardee’s over a biscuit and coffee.

He was an active member of Mt. Juliet Masonic Lodge No. 642 for nearly 30 years and a member of the Federal Active and Retired Employees Association.

A Celebration of Life Service will be conducted 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 31, 2017 in Hermitage Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Chuck Groover officiating. Interment will follow in Hermitage Memorial Gardens. Rance Lester, Dylan and Austyn Geerts, John Dobbs, Tyler Lashbrook and Jim Austyn will serve as Pallbearers. The family will receive friends from 4 – 8 pm Tuesday and from 9 – 11 am Wednesday. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, PO Box 1000, Dept. 142, Memphis, TN 38101-9908. Visit the online obituary:

www.hermitagefh.com. Hermitage Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens, 535 Shute Lane, Old Hickory, TN 37138. (615) 889-0361.