James Leonard Pendergrass

James Leonard Pendergrass

NEW ORLEANS / SHREVEPORT, LA - Mr. James Leonard Pendergrass, 86, of Shreveport, LA passed away on October 15, 2009 after a lengthy illness. Funeral services will be held at Centuries Memorial Park at 2:00 PM on Tuesday, October 20. Visitation will precede the service from 1:00 until 2:00 PM on that same day. Mr. Pendergrass was born in Portsmouth, VA on February 23, 1923. He resided with his family in New Orleans, LA for 78 years until he and his wife, Sybil, moved to Shreveport after Hurricane Katrina. Mr. Pendergrass attended Tulane University for 4 years studying Electrical Engineering. He graduated from Columbia University where he was commissioned as an officer in the US Navy. He served on the US Battleship New York in the Phillipines during WWII. After the war he was married in Norfolk, VA to Sybil Causey Pendergrass from Grifton, North Carolina. They moved to New Orleans to raise their family. James and his father owned and operated two companies in New Orleans: Mississippi Valley Electric Co. and Electrical Parts and Supply Corp.

Mr. Pendergrass was preceded in death by his parents, Frank Lafayette Pendergrass, Jr. and Katie Dell Twitty Pendergrass, and his sister, Helen Pendergrass Larmann. Survivors included his wife of 63 years, Sybil Causey Pendergrass; 2 sons, Donald Leonard Pendergrass and his wife Merrie Gibson Pendergrass of Shreveport, and Robert Glen Pendergrass and his wife Ann Bourgeois Pendergrass of New Orleans; and daughter, Dianne Pendergrass Gosslee and her husband, James David Gosslee of Shreveport; 10 grandchildren, Clayton Michael Pendergrass, Scott Aaron Pendergrass, Jared Martin Pendergrass, Katie Ann Pendergrass, Megan Lee Pendergrass, Betsy Eve Pendergrass (daughters of Pam Wadell Pendergrass), Shane Michael Bourgeois, Stephen Bradford Gosslee, Jeffrey Michael Gosslee and Krista Gosslee LeBlanc; 12 great-grandchildren, Liam Anders Pendergrass, Colin Gustav Pendergrass, Finley Erik Pendergrass, Alexa Christine Pendergrass, Elijah Christopher Pendergrass, Baileigh Fallon Gosslee, Patrick Celton Gosslee, Thomas Kieron Gosslee, Callaway Mason Gosslee, Campbell Michael Gosslee, Mason Crews LeBlanc and Reilly Magnolia Lomax. James Pendergrass' six grandsons will serve as pallbearers.

The family would like to express a special thanks to Dr. Hernandez, Dr. Fleniken, Frank Camus, Ruby Coates and to the staff at the Memory Loss Cottage at the Glen Retirement Community, Shreveport/Bossier Hospice and Louisiana War Veterans Home who helped make James' 4 years in Shreveport such a blessing to him and a peaceful end to a 15 year illness.

If you would like to sign the online register and offer the family condolences please log onto www.centuriesmemorialfh.com. Centuries Memorial

Funeral Home 318-686-4334