James (“Jimmy“ ) Alan Jackson passed away on Sunday, May 1, 2016, in Athens, Georgia after a long courageous battle with cancer. Jimmy was born on May 16, 1948 in Clewiston, Florida. He graduated from Belle Glade High School in 1967. He attended ABAC and graduated from Brewton Parker College. He moved to Vidalia, Georgia in 1974.  Jimmy began his career with Southern Company’s nuclear power station, Plant Edwin I. Hatch, in 1976, as a plant equipment operator, in the operations department for many years. He transferred to the plant maintenance department as an electrician and later to the project planning group where he worked as a scheduler focusing on outage project planning. In 2013, he retired from Southern Nuclear with over 35 years of service. By invitation from the plant, he continued to work in the planning department as a sub-contractor until 2015. 

Jimmy was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Vidalia for many years before moving to Hartwell, Georgia to enjoy retirement on the lake in 2013. He found a new church family with the First United Methodist Church of Hartwell, Georgia. Jimmy loved hunting, fishing, friends and his family. 

Jimmy is survived by his wife of 46 years, Kathy Jackson of Hartwell, Georgia; two daughters, Kelly Jackson (Andrew Schaller) of Wellington, Florida and Casey Hawthorne (Bo Hawthorne) of Richmond, Virginia; three grandsons, Jackson and Eli James Hawthorne of Richmond, Virginia and Chase Hanning of Wellington, Florida. Jimmy is also survived by his two brothers, Billy Jackson of Elkmont, Alabama and Dennis Jackson (Bettie Jackson) of Gainesville, Florida. 

He was preceded in death by his father, James Morgan Jackson and mother, Ethel McKinley Jackson.

The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Wednesday evening from 5:00 to 7:30 and a graveside memorial service Thursday, May 5th at Union Baptist Church, Pitts Georgia with longtime high school friend, Reverend Ray Sullivan presiding. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the First United Methodist Church P.O. Box 150, Vidalia, GA 30475, or the First United Methodist Church of Hartwell, Georgia, 200 East Howell Street, Hartwell, Georgia 30643.

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