Mr. James F. "Pappaw" Moody's Obituary
Obituary – Pappaw (James F. Moody)
Jim Moody (a.k.a. Kimo and Pappaw) began his journey in 1925 in Harrisonburg, VA. He left home at the age of 16 to join the Marines in WWII. When stationed in Pearl Harbor, he met Amelia Peterson (a.k.a Pete and Granny) who became his wife. They began a family and welcomed two children into their lives, Pamella (Pam) and then Lawrence (Larry). Jim worked through the GI Bill to obtain an education and move into electronics where he began work as part of the National Advisory Council on Aeronautics (NACA) which later became the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958. In the early 1960’s when Johnson Space Center was under construction, Jim and his family moved to Houston where he worked as an avionics technician during the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, and early Shuttle Programs until his retirement. Jim most certainly led an interesting life with many stories to tell of his adventures but what made him remarkable was his behavior as a human being. He treated people with respect and kindness. He was generous in lending tools or hands to get something accomplished. When his daughter’s husband failed in his duties as a father to his grandson, Colin, Jim and his wife (Pappaw and Granny) stepped in a took an active role in supporting their daughter and raising Colin. Jim was a father to his grandson and taught by example how a man should conduct himself and treat others. When Pam, who was a single mother, needed something all she had to do was mention it and the next morning at 7am there was a knock on the door, and there was Pappaw and Granny with tools and hardware in hand to fix whatever it was. Jim was very sharp, detail oriented, handy, patient, and very much into gadgets…this was the perfect confluence of traits that likely made him successful at NASA although, as a child observing this, it was just amazing to have him take things apart, figure them out, and fix them. One Christmas, Uncle Larry and Aunt Betty (Jim’s sister) sent a remote controlled (R/C) corvette down to Houston for Colin, but it arrived broken. That didn’t matter to Pappaw because as with all new items, Pappaw often took them apart, fixed or upgraded them in some way, and made them perfect…in this case, before his grandson laid eyes on it. Anyone who knew Jim and Pete will have stories like this; Jim made the world a better place to live. When Pete (Granny) passed on more than 10 years ago, Jim (Pappaw) was a wreck but he had the blessing to meet, love, and live a second life with Betty Schneider as his wife. They traveled, played games, socialized with friends, and just enjoyed the time they had together. In recent years, Betty helped Jim through numerous medical conditions and was with him, caring and loving him to the end; a rare and blessed gift. Now that Pappaw and Granny have both passed on, the world has a hole that cannot be filled but it is up to all of us who remember them and the ideals they lived by to carry on and teach our children what Pappaw and Granny taught us so that we can make the world a better place to live just as they did. Jim is survived by his wife Betty, daughter Pam, grandson Colin, and four great-grandchildren Caiden, Connor, Amy, and Emily.
What’s your fondest memory of James?
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Share a story where James' kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with James you’ll never forget.
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