Our beloved James Daniel Taylor Jr., age 94 died peacefully on July 20th, 2023 surrounded by his family.
Jim was married to his wife Tess for 58 years. He was an amazing husband and a wonderful father to his three children: Anita, Andrea, and Alex and his daughter in law Zane. He was a beloved Papa to his six grandchildren: Kate, David, Phoenix, Walter, Vivienne, and Siena. He supported every activity and encouraged their education and interests.
Jim was born on November 21,1928 to James Daniel Taylor, Sr and Ella Sophie Sneedse in Rahway, New Jersey. He graduated from Rahway High School and enlisted in the Army at 17 years old, where he served in Japan after WWII. He attended college on the G.I. bill where he Graduated from the Georgetown School of Foreign Service. After college, he accepted a job with Standard Oil and was stationed in the Philippines where he eventually became head of marketing for southeast Asia. He loved the Filipino people and learned to speak Tagalog. He was fascinated by different languages and spoke Japanese, Spanish, Italian, and other Filipino dialects.
He eventually boarded a Pan AM flight from Honolulu to Manila where he met the love of his life, Tess who was working as a stewardess on his flight. After marrying in 1965, they moved to El Salvador, Costa Rica, then New York City, where he worked for Price Waterhouse as a
management consultant. Eventually, they settled in Winter Park in 1974, where Jim became a Schlitz Beer distributor.
He enjoyed playing tennis, swimming, and water aerobics, as well as the friends he made at the Winter Park Racquet Club. In 1984, he became president. He enjoyed reading and traveling all over the world with Tess. He loved the Hoyas, and never missed a Georgetown Basketball game.
He will be remembered for his generosity, love of his family, and his fantastic sense of humor. We feel extremely lucky to have been a part of his amazing life and will miss him dearly.
A mass to celebrated Jim’s life will be held at St. Margaret Mary Church on Monday, July 31st at 10:00 am.