James Perry Rickards

James (Jim) Perry Rickards, Sr., 94, of Sarasota, died on 7 May 2025. A memorial service to celebrate Jim's life will be held on 3 Jun 2025, at The Glenridge at Palmer Ranch.
His family includes his current wife, Kathleen, of 25 years; four children, son James (Lynn) Rickards, Jr., of Ocean View, DE, son David Rickards of Phoenix, AZ, daughter Susan (Mark) Pollman of Las Vegas, NV, son John (Laura) Rickards of Boiling Springs, PA, step daughter Laurie (Bruce) Blanton of Lake Elsinore, CA, step daughter Arlene (Charles) Kwaw of Ft Worth, TX; nine grandchildren, Heather (Sean) Flynn of Havertown, PA, Ashley Rickards of Denver, CO, Jason (Kim) Rickards of Fairfax, VA, Kylee (Nick) Ranck of Travis AFB, CA, Courtenay (Damien) Mencini of Denver, CO, Lindsey Rickards of Baltimore, MD, Garth (Elisabeth) Rickards of Mechanicsburg, PA, Olivia Rickards of Mechanicsburg, PA, and Asher (Cindy) Rickards of Tucson, AZ; 10 great grandchildren; sister Kathryn Tomlinson, sister Maryanne (Doug) Creech; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Emily (Jones); brother, Joseph (Jr.), sister, Nancy; sister, Emily Reams; wife, Margaret Suzanne (Sue) Hicks (44 years).
Jim was born March 4,1931, in Easton, Pennsylvania and his family moved to Morgantown, West Virginia when he was a young teenager. He joined the Boy Scouts of America and earned the coveted rank of Eagle Scout. He graduated from Morgantown High School in Morgantown West Virginia and later attended West Virginia University and then transferred to East Carolina College in Greenville, North Carolina and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Jim was called to be a pastor and attended Duke University's School of Divinity where he earned both a Bachelor's of Divinity and a Master's of Divinity. Upon graduation Jim was a circuit preacher in North Carolina with the United Methodist Church. Jim was called to be a Chaplain in the United States Air Force in 1955. He served his country for 26 years, both in the Reserves and Active Duty, retiring in 1976 at the rank of Colonel. His multiple stations of service included: Thule AFS Greenland, Maxwell AFB AL, Kirkland AFB NM, Chateauroux, France, Chief of Chaplains Office, Pentagon, Lowry AFB CO, Dover AFB DE, and Yokota AB Japan. Jim retired from the United States Air Force and moved to Springfield, VA where he worked for the United Methodist Church as Director of Education and an endorsing agent to bring new Chaplains into the military. He and his first wife, Sue, moved to Punta Gorda, FL in 1987. Jim started a third career as a real estate agent and Jim enjoyed playing golf (achieving a hole in one in 2014), traveling, cruising, and spending time with his family. Jim's first wife, Sue passed in 1997. Jim met his current wife, Kathleen in 1999. They were married in March 2000 in Punta Gorda FL.
In lieu of flowers memorial donations in Jim's honor may be made to Duke Divinity Give Fund. These funds are used to provide scholarships to future Christian leaders.
Condolences may be left directly to the family by clicking on the guestbook.