Mr. James Whitla

WHITLA, James November 23, 1930 – March 18, 2020 James passed away peacefully next to the love of his life at Foothill Retirement in Tujunga, CA. He will be greatly missed by his family, friends, and community. James was born to James and Sarah Whitla in Belfast, Northern Ireland on Nov. 23,1930. He grew up with his younger brother, Norman, in the town of Bangor in County Down. He always loved building model airplanes and had an aptitude for math and science, and a talent for drawing & painting. Jim attended higher education in London and Manchester, England, eventually earning him the equivalent of a Master's Degree in Mechanical/Electrical Engineering.  He started work as an engineer at Avro Aircraft near Manchester, England working on the famous Vulcan Bomber. It was in Manchester that he met Mabel, while learning to ballroom dance.   They married on June 16,1956 and embarked on a journey to Toronto by way of the ship 'Ivernia' to work for Avro Canada. Two years later, they moved for the first time to the US to Seattle where Jim worked as an engineer at the Boeing Aircraft Company. Jim's two sons, Fred and Guy were born there. In 1966, Jim took a job back in England with Hawker Siddeley. The family traveled back by way of the ship 'Oriana', settling in Macclesfield, Cheshire.   In 1968, Jim decided to move back to the US, to work for Lockheed in Burbank with residence in Tujunga.  At Lockheed, he was awarded a patent for a special oxygen system on the L1011 aircraft.  A few years later, Jim took a job with Air Dry Corporation working on air devices for submarines. He and Mabel became naturalized US Citizens. His final career position was working for Continental Airlines at LAX as a Manager of Systems Engineering until his retirement in 1994. Jim was very involved with his boy's lives by volunteering in numerous capacities.  He helped tremendously with the Boy Scouts as Institutional Representative and helped lead the troop on a 50 mile backpacking trip in the Sierras.  He loved to watch his boys play soccer, where he was also a referee for AYSO.   His love for God and his church was very important to him and his family. Jim and Mabel have been members of Tujunga United Methodist Church for over 50 years serving in many ways on committees, ushering and teaching Sunday school, always finding ways to help others in the congregation. Jim was also a member of the Freemasons. During his retirement, Jim and his wife loved to travel in their RV with their Golden Retriever, Lance.  They would visit numerous landmarks around the US and of course, their grandchildren in Michigan and Texas.  One highlight was a road trip to Durango, CO where they met up with Fred's family to ride the Durango-Silverton Railway. He loved the railway, especially steam locomotives, as well as his passion for historic airplanes and ships.  Another highlight was a surprise on his 80th birthday, where Guy's family took Jim and Mabs to San Diego to enjoy an aerial tour in a vintage 1920s-era biplane. Several years ago, Jim's joy of model building culminated with the completion of a scratch built 'museum quality' wooden clipper ship, the "Sea Witch". He also continued his passion for painting captivating oil and watercolors over the years, rendering landscapes, ships (Titanic), cars, and animals (pet portraits).  Some of these adorn the walls of the Foothill Retirement. He also loved to read a lot, keeping up with the Institute of Mechanical Engineering publications, books of all kinds and especially studying the Bible. James is survived by his wife, Mabel; sons, Fred (Lisa), Guy (Robyn); grandchildren, James (Amy), Keegan, Ian, Stephanie, Andrew and Braeden; sister-in-law, Di; nieces and nephews in the UK. He is predeceased by his parents, James and Sarah; and his brother, Norman. A private service will be at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills on Thursday March 26, 2020. The family suggests donating to his favorite charities; Operation Smile or Best Friends Animal Society in lieu of flowers. For memorial service information please see www.tributes.com/James-Whitla-2020