James Emmett Shawn

Charlotte - James (Jim) Emmett Shawn passed away on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, in Charlotte, NC.

Jim was born on April 28, 1940, in Knoxville, TN to Emmett and Helen Bulfin Shawn. Jim attended Staub School, Tyson Junior High, West High School and graduated from the University of Tennessee. He was a proud member of Army ROTC and the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. Jim went on to serve in the U.S. Army, earning a National Defense Service Medal before his honorable discharge in July 1966.

Jim met the love of his life, Judy, in the summer of 1964 in Clarksville, TN, where he was stationed at Ft. Campbell, KY. They married in 1965 and welcomed their first daughter, Alicia, in 1966. Later that year, the family moved to Knoxville, TN, where their second daughter, Amy, was born in 1967. Jim and Judy made Knoxville their home for the next 56 years.

Jim loved calling on his customers for over 42 years as an award-winning pharmaceutical sales representative with Pfizer Labs. Jim was an active member of Bearden United Methodist Church for 10 years and Concord Presbyterian Church for over 45 years.

Jim never met a stranger. He was always sharing jokes and laughing with others. Writing letters and poems to friends and family, "tinkering" in his garage with wood, glue, and a cardboard box, and working in the yard with Judy by his side brought him joy. Jim and Judy often drove to a Lenoir City nursery to fill up their car with pansies, wildflowers, and daisies to plant in their beautiful yard. Watching NASCAR and the University of Tennessee athletics on television, competing with his sons-in-law in golf or with Ruby in billiards, and reading anything involving trains (because his dad worked for L&N Railroad) was time well spent.

Jim loved his granddaughters, Emma, Ashley and Lauren. Pop/Papaw/DaDaddy enjoyed woodworking, creating the best bunk beds, wooden cars, and highchairs for the girls' American Girl dolls. The three individually enjoyed their annual summer Camp Mimi and Papaw week in Knoxville. Jim would "chauffeur" Mimi and a granddaughter in the backseat to dinners, Dollywood, The Titanic Exhibit in Sevierville, TN and the Knoxville Zoo or anywhere else the granddaughter wanted to go!

Jim is survived by his two daughters, Alicia Shawn Gagnon, and her husband, Ed, of Charlotte, NC and their daughter, Emma and her fiancé, Sam Gooch, and Amy Shawn Foley and her husband, Jeff, of Charlotte, NC and their daughters, Ashley and Lauren; his twin brother, William Shawn of The Villages, FL; and his best friend, Richard Warren, of Knoxville, TN.

Jim passed away 36 hours before his loving wife, Judy. Jim and Judy celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in April 2025. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Alicia and Amy are so grateful for the kind and compassionate care given to their father both in Epworth/Independent Living and Cuthbertson Village/Memory Care at Aldersgate. They would like to extend a special thank you to his caregiver, Hollie Davis whose warm personality brought joy to him every day.

A Celebration of Life for Jim and his wife, Judy, will be held at 1:00 PM on Friday, November 21, 2025, at Aldersgate in Ray Hall Chapel/Fellowship Hall. The family will receive friends following the service in the Wintergarden Club Room.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be offered in memory of Jim to: Aldersgate Employee Christmas Fund, Patti Klein, Treasurer, Aldersgate Resident Association, 3800 Shamrock Drive, Charlotte, NC 28215 (include in the memo line: 2025 Christmas Fund in Memory of Jim Shawn) or to The University of Tennessee Basic Needs Emergency Fund at https://tiny.utk.edu/basicneedsgiving.

Arrangements are in the care of Kenneth W. Poe Funeral & Cremation Service, 1321 Berkeley Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204; (704) 641-7606. Online condolences may be shared at www.kennethpoeservices.com.