James O. Hightower, 84, went to live with the Lord on Sunday morning, January 28, 2018. He was born in San Angelo, TX to James O. Sr. and Vera Hightower.
He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Jeanne; sons, James O. Hightower III and wife, Terri, and Richard Alan Hightower, all of Huntsville; grandchildren, Jennifer Hammonds Fischer (Seth) of Knoxville, TN, David Russell Hammonds of Huntsville, Chris Hightower of Seattle, WA, Leslee Gaston of Athens, AL, Clayton Daniel Hightower of the University of Alabama in Birmingham, and Skye Moore of Athens; great-grandchildren, Noah, Adam and Samuel Fischer, all of Knoxville, TN; sister, Nell Cannon of Memphis; and several nieces and nephews of Memphis, TN and Little Rock, AR. Mr. Hightower was preceded in death by a son, David Keith, who died in 1976, and a daughter, Janice Hammonds, who died in October, 2009.
Jim grew up in Lewisburg, TN and graduated from Marshall County High School. He then attended MTSU in Murfreesboro, TN, and graduated with a BS in Chemistry and a commission in the US Army of 2nd LT. He served six years in the military and was discharged with the rank of Captain. Following the military, he joined the Thiokol company, where he worked for 43 years in the Huntsville division, Brunswick, GA division, and the Corp division in Utah. At Thiokol, he worked on defense weapons and was awarded many patents. He retired as Department Manager of Research and Development.
Visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, January 30 at Laughlin Service Funeral Home. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, January 31 at Faith Presbyterian Church, at the corner of Airport Road and Whitesburg Dr., with the Rev. Dr. Thomas Lovell officiating. Following the memorial service, visitation will be held in the Fellowship Hall at the church. There will be a private burial.
Memorials may be made to the organ fund started in memory of their daughter at Faith Presbyterian, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Wounded Warriors project, or a charity of your choice.
The family wishes to thank you for your prayers and your presence at the services. May God bless you as you have blessed us.
