OBITUARY: James Fleming “Ball” Mabry Sr.

James Fleming (“Ball”) Mabry, Sr., passed away peacefully in his sleep at 7:30 CDT on September 9, 2024. He was 94 years old.

Jim born on September 19, 1929, in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was a resident of Knoxville until moving to Nashville in the past year for health reasons. His parents were Gertrude Inez and William Rogers Mabry, Sr., also of Knoxville. He has one living sibling, Helen Marie Mabry Connor of Knoxville, and three deceased siblings: Roger Jr., John, and Gertrude Mabry Sharpe.

Jim attended Knoxville Catholic High School where he was Captain of the Basketball team. He attended the University of Tennessee, where all of his children and grandchildren also graduated. He was an avid Vol sports fan, and the nickname “Ball” came from his lifelong devotion to sports of all kinds.

Jim Mabry Sr. served his country in the Korean War in the United States Navy. He retired from Brown Shoe Company after working there for 32 years.

Jim’s stories were bigger than life and his entertainment qualities were unparalleled. Most people who knew him well would simply describe Jim as a “character.” He was an avid championship amateur golfer who played out of Beaver Brook Country Club, and he was also a Southeastern United States diving champion. In later years, Jim developed a love for flowers and was responsible for several landscape floral arrangements in the Knoxville area. He also served as a docent on Dogwood Arts Festival Tours. He was a member of Holy Ghost Catholic Church and later at St. Albert the Great Parish.

He is survived by his wife of seventy-one years, Barbara Jean Crippen Mabry, sons Thomas (Kitty Myers) of Asheville, Mark (Becky Lay Mabry) and daughter Michelle (Neal Dugger) of Nashville. He was predeceased in death by his son, James Jr. (Rosemary Beall Mabry). Jim was blessed six grandchildren: Ashley Mabry Arms of Knoxville, Matt (Kristen D’Agostino Mabry) of Atlanta, Andrew and Eli Sullivan of Nashville and Fleming and Parker Mabry of Nashville. His great grandchildren are Decklan and Rylan (Ashley) and Olivia (Matt).

Jim’s remains will be interred in a private military ceremony at the Middle Tennessee Veterans Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in the name of Jim Mabry Sr. at the Mabry-Hazen House in Knoxville or St. Albert the Great Parish in Halls, TN. A memorial service is planned at a later

This obituary was published by Compassion Funeral & Cremation Services.

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