James Austin Forsythe Jr

James Austin Forsythe Jr (Jim) of Farmville, originally from St. Louis, Missouri, gained his heavenly wings on Sunday, June 14th. He was 69 years old. He is survived by his wife of 41 years, Sharon Forsythe, his daughter Kelly Acevedo (Wolfgang), his son Timothy Forsythe, his sister Leslie Forsythe, and his precious granddaughter Aria Acevedo. He was P-pa to Aria, who was the light of his life.

Jim was born on April 5, 1957 to Marcella and James Forsythe. He attended the Affton School District where he enjoyed playing basketball, football and track. He attended UMSL where he earned his bachelor's degree. After a variety of jobs, Jim began work at Tubular Steel, Inc. in 1981 in St. Louis where he met Sharon. The two were friends and both accepted transfers to the branch office in Katy, Texas. They moved in January of 1984 and never spent a day apart from that point forward. They were engaged in September and married in June of 1985. Kelly was born in 1988 and Tim in 1993. They moved back to St. Louis in 1997. Jim continued to work for Tubular Steel for 40 years. He retired in 2022 and moved to Farmville, VA, to be near his family.

Softball was a passion of Jim’s. He played on the team for Tubular Steel in both St. Louis and Houston and played for a variety of teams in Houston. He also loved playing racquetball for many years with his good friends, Billy and Steve in Houston, and later with Steve in St. Louis until the club closed.

Jim was the classic definition of a gentleman. He was such a strong man who cared for his family above all. Jim battled with his health for six years. We are strong because of him. He will be missed by so many, but we take comfort in knowing he is in a better place.

Jim’s celebration of life service will be held on Wednesday, June 24th at 2 pm at Farmville United Methodist Church. Visitation will begin at 1 pm. Burial will be private. The service will be live streamed beginning at 2 pm (EST) on YouTube.

In lieu of flowers, donations to any homeless charity of your choice in memory of Jim would be greatly appreciated. Jim's heart always went out to those who had no home.