Mr. James “Jim” Joseph Stoffel, 86, of Fernandina Beach, Fla., passed away Wednesday, February 27, 2019 at his home.
Born in Huntington, Ind., he was a son of the late Frank Joseph and Mary Gill Stoffel. He attended the local schools of Huntington, and it was in Huntington, as a youth, that he would find his lifelong passion. He worked for two years as the assistant golf professional at the La Fontaine Golf and Country Club in Huntington.
After serving his country in the U.S. Navy, Jim would continue his lifelong pursuit as a golf professional. Over the years, he served as the head golf professional at the Jacksonville Country Club in Jacksonville, N.C., Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter, S.C., and the Surf Golf and Beach Club in North Myrtle Beach, S.C. He was also owner of the Carolina Shores Golf and Country Club in Calabash, N.C. and was co-owner of the Royal Amelia Golf Links on Amelia Island, Fla.
Jim married Rosemary Maples in 1952, and they were the proud parents of seven children. Rosemary passed away in 1988.
Jim was a Third Degree member of the Knights of Columbus for 68 years. He was a member of St. Michael Catholic Church and was active in the St. Michael Men’s Club. In addition to his church life, he was an ardent hunter and fisherman.
In 1991, he married Renée Edmonson of Lake Norman, N.C., and after residing in North Myrtle Beach for eight years, they moved to Fernandina Beach to retire.
In addition to his parents and his first wife, Jim was preceded in death by a four-year-old son, Michael, in 1969.
He leaves behind his wife, Renée; his six children and their spouses, Cary and Susan Stoffel, Karon and Steve Kightlinger, Debbie and Sloan Wright, Mary Ann and Bob Vespa, Ronald and Jamie Stoffel, and Kathleen and Kenneth Siler; and Renée’s son and his wife, Jimmy and Julie Edmonson, and their three sons, as well as his 18 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
A Memorial Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Thursday, March 7, 2019 at St. Michael Catholic Church in Fernandina Beach with Fr. Jose Kallukalam, celebrant. A reception will follow in the parish hall. Jim will be laid to rest at a later date in North Myrtle Beach.
In his memory, the family asks that memorials be made to Community Hospice & Palliative Care, 4266 Sunbeam Road, Jacksonville, FL 32257.
Please share your memories and condolences at www.oxley-heard.com.
Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors