James Ruffin Mitchell ’32

Jim Mitchell died of a heart attack on July 3, 1996, at Frye Memorial Medical Center in Hickory, N.C.

Graduating, as all of us did, in the Depression years, Jim tried his hand at a number of occupations, including salesman for Intl. Harvester and owner of Mitchell's Fancy Foods in Atlanta. During WWII, he served as a naval flight instructor in Miami. He then settled in Hickory, where he formed Custom Craft Furniture, which manufactured primarily juvenile furniture. He operated the business until he sold it in 1974. He was active in community affairs, serving as chairman or president of a variety of organizations including the Family Guidance Center, United Way, Rotary Club, and the Lake Hickory Country Club. He was planning to come back for our 65th reunion when fate intervened.

Jim's first wife, Helen Hayes, died of cancer in 1946 shortly after the birth of their only son, who died in 1986. He married Beulah Mae Jones in 1949. She survives him, along with two grandchildren, Lamar Mitchell and Virginia Daley. The class joins with them in mourning our mutual loss.

The Class of 1932