James Wilhite Kidd, 82, of Lexington, Virginia died suddenly in his home on January 20, 2012. He is survived by his wife, Lilli Bradin. He was born in Kaymoor, West Virginia on September 15, 1929 and was the son of Charles A. and Ruth W. Kidd.

He was a graduate of the Peddie School, Class of 1948, and an alumnus of Washington and Lee University, Class of 1952, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity. He was also a graduate of the Army Language School at the Presidio in Monterey, California and served with the U.S. military in Korea as an Intelligence Specialist. He had a long career in sales and marketing, most of it in San Francisco, California. He particularly enjoyed his years with Nortel, a telecommunications company where he functioned as National Accounts Sales Manager. At one point he was named Nortel’s top national producer.

He retired in 1990 and moved from San Francisco to Orcas Island, Washington where he and Lilli built a beautiful home and lived for 10 years. In 2000 he and Lilli moved to Lexington,Virginia. Being an intrinsically artistic and creative person, James was a true connoisseur of beauty. He was a gifted cabinet maker and furniture builder, a student of architecture, a gourmet cook, a lover of jazz, a collector of art, an avid reader, and possessor of a fine and vast vocabulary that he used well and often. His years both on Orcas Island and in Lexington were rich in friendship and contentment. Jim’s gregarious personality, sharp sense of humor, infectious laugh and refined good manners will be sorely missed.

In addition to his wife, Lilli, he is survived by two sons, Jay Hardesty Kidd of New York City and Charles Wilhite Kidd of Chico, California as well as a grandson, Sean Kidd, also of Chico, California. Services were held on Wednesday, January 25 at Lee Chapel, Washington and Lee, University. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Jim’s memory may be made to Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia.

Submitted by James Wilhite Kidd’s family.