REV. DR. JAMES RALPH OLIVER SR.
Died Oct. 6, 2017
The Rev. Doctor James Ralph Oliver Sr., 77, died Friday, Oct. 6, 2017.
Funeral services will be held at 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 9, 2017, at Northwoods United Methodist Church.
He was born in Fairmont, N.C., the son of James Crawford Oliver and Thelma Garris Oliver.
He graduated from Fairmont High School, and earned bachelor degrees in history and divinity from Duke University and a doctorate of ministry from Drew University.
He is survived by his beloved wife of 53 years, Judy Mitchell Oliver, and his children, son, James R. Oliver Jr. and wife, Kathy, of Camden, N.C., daughter, Suzanne Oliver Moye and husband, Rob, of Greenville, son, Steve Mitchell Oliver of Jacksonville, N.C., and daughter, Hannah Oliver Floyd and husband, Thomas, of Jacksonville, N.C., as well as four grandchildren, Colleen, Wyatt, Shane and William.
He is also survived by his younger brother, Larry Oliver of Myrtle Beach, S.C., and was preceded in death by his brother, Wayne Oliver.
After graduating from divinity school, he was a United Methodist minister in the North Carolina Conference for 43 years. He served approximately 11 United Methodist churches throughout Eastern North Carolina.
The family would like to thank all those who remembered him in prayer and to thank the caregivers who tended him so faithfully at both Lower Cape Fear Hospice and Premier Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
The family will receive friends Monday afternoon prior to the service from 3 to 4 p.m. at the church.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Northwood United Methodist Church trustees, 1528 Gum Branch Road, Jacksonville, N.C., 28540, or Onslow County Caregivers Inc., P.O. Box 7304, Jacksonville, N.C., 28540 (Hospice House).
Electronic condolences may be left for the family at www.jonesfh.org.
(Pd)
Published in Obituaries on October 8, 2017 1:46 AM