James Walter Mahaffey

JAMES WALTER MAHAFFEY        

James Walter Mahaffey, 83, of Decatur, died December 23, 2009, at Hospice Atlanta. Born May 31, 1926, he was preceded in death by his parents, the late James Preston and Ruby Lott Mahaffey of Hoschton, Georgia. A veteran of World War II, he fought in the Battle of the Bulge and was the recipient of the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. After the war, he attended Georgia Tech and was a civil engineer who worked for more than 30 years for the Georgia Department of Transportation.  He was an artist and writer whose works are well known in the Hoschton-Braselton area where he and his wife had a second home.  He was a member of Central Congregational Church in Atlanta. He was married for more than 61 years to the former Evelyn Louise Wright, who died last month.  He is survived by two sons, James Alexander (wife Carolyn) and Alan Barry Mahaffey; grandsons Alexander and Colin Mahaffey; step-grandchildren Jennifer Whatley Fletcher (husband David, sons Jack, Michael, and Luke) of Peachtree City, Georgia, and John Bennett Whatley (wife Molly, daughters Katherine and Mary Carolyn) of Asheville, N.C.  Funeral services will be held in the chapel of A. S. Turner & Sons at 2 p.m. Saturday, December 26^th. Interment will follow in the Hoschton City Cemetery.  In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Central Congregational Church, 2676 Clairmont Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, or to Visiting Nurse/Hospice Atlanta, 1244 Park Vista Drive NE, Atlanta, GA 30319. The family will receive friends from 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday at A. S. Turner & Sons.