Mr. James Coker Fort

James Coker Fort, 95, died on Friday, September 9, 2022, at his home, Merlin Glen, in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, a place he treasured. Born in Gaffney, South Carolina, in 1927, he was the second son of James Claude Fort and Gladys Coker Fort. In 1951, he married Jean Prentice Smith in Bermuda after a courtship that began in Kindergarten in Gaffney. Their marriage lasted 65 years until Jean’s death in 2015 and produced 7 children, 19 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren. Jim attended the Darlington School in Rome, Georgia, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, from which he graduated in 1949, after a stint in North Africa with the U.S. Navy during World War II. After graduation, Jim began a long career at Sonoco Products Company in Hartsville, South Carolina. He held a number of executive positions and was a member of the Board of Directors. During his time with Sonoco and following his retirement, Jim served on the boards of Coker University (formerly Coker College) in Hartsville, the Bank of Hartsville, the Hartsville Oil Mill, and Steele Heddle Manufacturing in Greenville, South Carolina. He was a founding member of the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum, a Life Trustee of the Darlington School, board member of the North Carolina Botanical Gardens in Chapel Hill, and Chairman of The Trust Company of South Carolina. Later in life, he was a co-founder and chairman of American Media Services Company, a developer of radio properties. Jim and Jean were congregants of St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in Hartsville and St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church in Blowing Rock. Jim was an exhaustive reader, a lover of classical music, a world traveler, and in his earlier years proved to be an accomplished amateur sculptor. He had a special passion for vintage cars and treasured his 1934 V12 Packard, a surprise Christmas gift from Jean. On mountain walks he enjoyed identifying the wildflowers, and knew the birds that visited his feeders in Blowing Rock. He loved red wine and a good story. Ever prepared with the introduction, “I heard a joke the other day,” he made his loved ones laugh until his last. Jim is survived by his six children: Gay Fort Boswell, of Charlotte, NC, Melanie Fort Christian (Lynch), of Lynchburg, VA, Claudia Fort Heath (Andy), of Charlotte, NC, Caleb Coker Fort, of Winston Salem, NC, George Hamlet Tatum Fort (Alice), of Little Switzerland, NC, and Edward Gay Fort (Lori) of Hartsville, SC, 19 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son, James Coker Fort, Jr., his grandson, Saxon Crenshaw Boswell, and his wife Jean Prentice Smith Fort. A private family service will be held at St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church on Saturday, September 17. Memorial contributions may be made to Coker University Scholarship Fund, Hartsville, SC, or St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church, Blowing Rock, NC.

Tributes

Mr. James Coker Fort

February 15, 1927 - September 9, 2022