James D. Lionberger ’54

Jim died unexpectedly Dec. 30, 2017, in Florida.

Jim transferred to Princeton as a sophomore and left during his junior year. With a passion for flying, he enlisted in the Air Force and pilot school. Upon leaving the Air Force as captain, he served in the Missouri Air National Guard. He completed his education at Washington University in St. Louis with a degree in geology.

He was a reinsurance executive with Commercial Union Insurance until he retired. After moving to Marion, Mass., he became a member of the Kittansett Club, where he enjoyed many challenging rounds of golf and spent many days chasing bluefish on Buzzards Bay. With his godson he built a high-performance Kitfox single-engine experimental aircraft. Its bright yellow color was well known in the skies over the scenic shores of the Cape and islands, from which he took aerial photographs. He also enjoyed traveling and winter retreats in Vero Beach, Fla.

He is survived by his wife, Patricia; daughter Deborah Corcoran and her husband, Philip; daughter Dr. Margaret Lionberger and her husband, Douglas Kohn; grandsons Jackson and Charles Kohn; and sister Margaret Skinner. He was predeceased by his first wife, Deborah, and daughter Anne.