William "Ike" Dwight James

It all began on April 25, 1945 in Mocksville, NC- William Dwight (Ike) James was born to Clarence Bruce and Laura Grace (Sheek) James as the youngest and best looking of nine siblings.

Ike was the father of two - William Dwight James, Jr. (Jennifer) and Angela D Ketcham (Anthony) , and grandfather to four: Laura, Riley, and Sorrel Ketcham (who knew him as Hamdaddy) , and Aiden James (who called him Papa Ike).

Aside from his family, Ike was most proud of his Submarine service as a Sonarman aboard the USS Requin. He often regaled his kids with stories that began “Did I tell you about the time I was in the Navy ?” .He was happy to later reconnect with a few of his fellow veterans and tour the now-decommissioned Sub now in Philadelphia.

Ike served his fellow man in many other ways, as well, including work as a Deacon and Sunday School teacher. He was that guy who carried extra handkerchiefs and umbrellas to funerals and weddings for those who might be in need. He loved dogs and babies his whole life and pretended to hate cats- but then raised two kittens anyway. He tried his best to be a strong positive influence in times of trouble; he once yelled “wooHOO! The rougher it is , the better we like it!” to his young son on a storm-tossed ski boat caught out on the big water at Santee. It was a great strategy.

He worked in the trucking industry his entire career- first as a terminal manager and then later as a rates analyst- from the beginning of teletype to the Teamster’s Strike and on through to his slow retirement in the early 2000’s.

Ike is survived by not only his children, his ex-wife Becky, and his grandchildren, but also by his dearest and best friend Philip Leach- they did lots of cipherin’ and fishin’ and built many wooden wonders while maintaining their many decades of shared friendship. As Ike put it, “He’s family, too.”

A graveside service will be Monday, July 7, 2025, at 11:00 AM with military honors at Florence National Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation, a local animal shelter, or - even better- raise a go-cup to his memory and share a fun story!