Mr. James Harry Shelly, age 86 of Middleton, Tennessee, passed from this life at his home Thursday morning, August 27, 2015.
He was born in Memphis to the late James P. and Lucille Dobbs Shelly. Mr. Shelly lived in Rogers Springs until his junior year of high school when the family relocated to Henderson, TN. While there, he attended and graduated from Freed-Hardeman College. In 1949, the Shelly family moved to Middleton, where Mr. Shelly lived the rest of his life. On January 20, 1950, he was united in marriage to Mignon Colwell. Mrs. Shelly passed away July 3, 2015 after 65 years of marriage.
Since coming to Middleton, Mr. Shelly was a merchant at J. P. Shelly & Sons General Merchandise Store where he worked along side his father and brother. An active supporter of Christian education, He was a member of the Middleton Church of Christ where he served as Elder for 37 years. Mr. Shelly was a city alderman in Middleton for 25 years, a member of the board of directors for the Bank of Middleton, a member of the Tippah Electric Board and was an instrumental member of the industrial board which oversaw the recruitment and locating of Dover Elevators (now Thyssen-Krupp) to the Middleton community.
In his spare time, he was an avid Ole Miss fan and had a passion for antique automobiles. He also served his country as a member of the US Naval Reserve.
A devoted father, grandfather, great-grandfather and brother, he leaves his daughter, Sherilyn (Gary) Martin of Jackson; his son, Keith (Lori) Shelly of Nashville; his brothers, J. P. (Joyce) Shelly of Middleton and Rubel (Myra) Shelly of Nashville; five grandchildren, Tisha Ewing (Jon), Kevin Martin (Jenny), Tavia Carlucci (Adam), Karah Sprouse (Ryan), and Kalyn Dennis (Caleb); and thirteen great-grandchildren, Savannah, Harrison, and Juliette Ewing, Kate, Andrew, Ruth, and Ethan Martin, Isabell and Ilyn Carlucci, James and Carolyn Colwell Sprouse, and Brooklyn and Elijah Dennis.
The family requests that memorials be made to the Middleton Church of Christ Library or the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org/donate)
