James Essinger

James (Jim) Edward Essinger was born in November 1936 and passed away peacefully on December 11, 2017 surrounded by many of his family members. Jim was born in Canton, Ohio and graduated from Lincoln High School class of 1954. He was an employee of Goodyear in Akron, Ohio for many years and retired from Blue Cross/Blue Shield of South Carolina. Jim served in the Naval Reserve from 1954 to 1962. He was a Third Degree Knight of the Knights of Columbus. Jim was a very giving and caring father to his own children, but also shared his time with many foster children and participated in the Big Brother/Big Sister program. He was also a member of St. John Neumann Church. Jim was a very special person and very much loved by all of his family and friends. He was kind hearted and was always clowning around because he enjoyed making others laugh and truly enjoyed life. We have many happy memories of Jim that we will cherish until we meet again. Jim may be gone but will never be forgotten and will always hold a special place in our hearts. Jim is survived by his wife Letha Essinger, sister Gayle Ulmer (David), son James (Patricia), daughter Jennifer Chudnoff (Kenneth), daughter Michelle Nottingham (David), son John Giovannelli (Sally), daughter Dr. Lisa Giovannelli, and daughter Julie Kell (Chris). Jim is also survived by his grandchildren, Jennifer, Andrea, Shawn, Nicole, Brandon, Dominique, Danielle, Tyler, Jonathon, Lauren, Jacob, Elliot, Nehalem, Noah and Daniel. A memorial service will be held at 12:00 noon Monday December18, 2017 at St. John Neumann Church, 100 Polo Road, Columbia, SC. In lieu of flowers please send donations to Oliver Gospel Mission at 1100 Taylor Street, Columbia, SC 29201.

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