James Arthur Massey's Obituary
James Arthur “Art” Massey, Jr. passed away Wednesday, April 27, 2016 at Germantown Methodist Hospital. He was born in Grenada, Mississippi on September 5, 1932 to the late Floy Craig Massey and James Arthur Massey, Sr. of Oakland, Mississippi. He was preceded in death by his brother, Charles Galloway and his sister, Billie Jane Massey Beaty. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Mary Glynne Carmichael Massey, his sons, Jeffrey William Massey (Sherri) of Germantown, TN, Charles Michael Massey of St. Louis, MO, and James Arthur “Jim” Massey, III (Rachel) of Yukon, OK, his daughter Leigh Anne Massey-Murray of Memphis, TN and his grandchildren, Jeffrey William “Will” Massey, Jr., Jessica Jane Massey, and Delia Rose Murray. He also leaves his brother, Jesse Bradley Massey of Oakland, MS, his sisters-in-law, Frances Keathly of Memphis, TN and Nancy Cofield of Germantown, TN and several nephews and nieces of Memphis, Nashville and South Carolina. Art also leaves his dedicated caregiver, Ronald R. Bobal to whom the family is greatly indebted. Ron cared for Art with love and respect throughout his lengthy illness. Art was a graduate of Oakland High School and an honor graduate of Mississippi State University. Following graduation he served in the U.S. Army Special Forces and 82nd Airborne Division. He began his career as a stock broker with Francis I. Dupont & Co. Later he became the Agricultural and Area Development Manager of the Memphis Area Chamber of Commerce. While Working for the Chamber of Commerce he was named Agricultural Man of the Year by the Agricultural Club of Memphis. He also served on the Boards of the Mid-South Fair and the Memphis AgriCenter. After leaving the Chamber of Commerce, he joined Belz Enterprise where he was a Director of the Industrial Division for 28 years. In 2001 he was the recipient of the MAAR Commercial Broker of the Year Award at the first Pinnacle Awards Ceremony. He also served on the MAAR Board. A longtime member of Christ United Methodist Church, Art served as president of his Sunday school class, president of the Methodist Men’s Club, as youth counselor and held various positions on the Church Board. A memorial service will be held in the Wilson Chapel of Christ United Methodist Church on Saturday, April 30 at 10:30 am. A reception will follow the service in the church parlor. A private family burial will be held prior to the memorial service. In lieu of flowers, the family request memorials be donated to Christ United Methodist Church, 4488 Poplar Ave., Memphis, TN 38117, The Church Health Center, 1219 Peabody Ave., Memphis, TN 38104 or the Art and Mary Carmichael Massey Endowed Scholarship, Mississippi State Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 6149, Mississippi State, MS 39762
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