Obituary of James William Heath

James William (Jim) Heath Jr, 80, husband of Diane Audioun Heath went home to be with the Lord Jesus Christ on June 3, 2019. He was the son of the late James W. and Mildred Walton Heath. In addition to his wife of 49 years, Jim is survived by two brothers, Edward Heath (Betty), Philip Heath (Sue) of Evans, GA, three daughters Christine Bondi (Steve) of Rochester, NY, Jennifer DeVitto (Michael) of Little Silver, NJ and Cara Heath of Charlotte, NC. He is also survived by seven grandchildren: Megan, Catherine, August James, and Susan Bondi, as well as Lauren, Anthony, and Matthew DeVitto. Other family members include much loved and numerous cousins and in-laws. Jim graduated from Academy of Richmond County, Augusta, GA in 1956 and attended Augusta Junior College. He was a member of the Marine Corps.  In the 50’s and 60’s he worked in the Caribbean Islands and Cape Canaveral on the Mercury program and as Press coordinator for the Gemini space programs. After leaving Cape Canaveral he moved to the Washington, DC area where he met his wife Diane and had a career in Technical Engineering and Sales. In 1997 he moved back to Florida, and later retired as East Coast Marketing Director for Hendry Corporation. Jim loved his family above all else, and his roles as Husband, Dad and PaPa were his most important jobs. He loved spending time with family and friends skiing, playing golf, or just talking and telling stories. He made friends wherever he went, and will be missed by many. A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, June 8, 2019 at 3 pm at First Baptist Church Melbourne, located at 3301 Dairy Road, Melbourne, FL. In lieu of flowers, donations to William Childs Hospice House in Palm Bay, FL or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital are appreciated.