AFRH-G Veteran Highlight – James A. “Jim” Tootle
By Lori Kerns, AFRH-G Librarian

Born in 1920, James A. “Jim” Tootle was raised on a farm in the rural area of Glennville, Georgia.  Growing up on the Tootle farm, Jim and his siblings began helping out as soon as they were able to walk.  As soon as he graduated high school, he and his brother decided to travel to Savannah, Georgia where they arrived at nightfall.  The brothers sat on a bench all night to await the opening of the recruitment center for them to enlist in the military.  At barely 18-years-old, Jim joined the Marine Corps and was sent off to Parris Island, South Carolina for boot camp.

Jim completed his training and was sent to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to work as an accounting clerk at the navy yard.  He decided to ask to be sent to Shanghai, China.  He received his orders to board the USS Henderson to make his way to Shanghai to begin his work as a company clerk.  While stationed in China he met a girl named Mildred.   The couple decided to marry while he was still stationed there.   Once World War II broke out, he was sent to Luzon in the Philippines where his unit, serving under General Douglas A. MacArthur, became involved in combat.  The unit moved to Corregidor and was assigned to beach defense.  Jim was wounded by enemy fire during this assignment.  He recovered and returned to combat. 

On May 6, 1942, Jim’s unit was ordered to destroy arms and surrender.  The men were taken as prisoners of war (POWs) and led on a death march to Cabanatuan for internment.   Later, they were put aboard a hell ship and transferred to Honshu, Japan.  While imprisoned at Camp Yodogawa, Jim was placed in charge of bean detail.  His responsibility was letting people go to town to get beans for the prisoners to eat.  Life in the POW camp was harsh.  The Japanese would punish the POWs by forcing them to kneel in the snow.  These punishments caused many, like Jim, to end up with frostbite.  Living in the camp was also difficult for the prisoners when they could hear the rumors about their captors’ plans, such as their intentions for Pearl Harbor. 

It was fortunate when Jim began to hear the grumblings about plans for Japan’s surrender.  Once the bomb was dropped on Japan forcing them to surrender, he was released after spending over three and a half years as a POW.  He was sent to San Francisco, California where he recovered.  Here, he was also reunited with Mildred. When he was released from the hospital, without blinking an eye, he returned to his work.  He mostly served his tours throughout the U.S.  When hostilities heated up in Korea, he was sent for a year of combat in Korea with the 1st Marine Division.  He recalls how the war in Korea was different than WWII because the Koreans fought mostly hand-to-hand combat. 

In 1958, after the Korean War, Jim finished his 20-year Marine Corps career.  His last tour of duty was at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina where he served as a captain.  His service and dedication to the Marines earned him 18 medals, to include the Bronze Star, the Good Conduct Medal and the Purple Heart.

With his military career behind him, Jim began a new civilian career working with the IRS.  His work with the IRS brought him to Biloxi, Mississippi.  After another 20 years of government service, he retired from the IRS and from working altogether.  After losing their spouses to illness, he and his neighbor, Marian, became friends.  Upon finding comfort in each other, their friendship eventually grew into a partnership.  The couple decided to build a lake house in Saucier, Mississippi where they have enjoyed the last 23 years together by fishing and gardening. 

Jim is the proud father of four children, Jan, Carol, Gerry, and Jamie, and two grandsons, Blake and Jordan.  When his children started to worry about his well-being, they decided it was best to get him into AFRH-G.  He has been in the Home for over two years.  These days, he enjoys watching the news on TV. But his favorite pastime is pulling weeds that are intentionally left just for him in the Home’s garden.  Jim is very lucky to have such a sweet, supporting family.  Likewise, the AFRH-G family is very proud to have this decorated veteran among its fantastic residents!