James Fisher Frakes (Tut), United States Air Force Colonel (Ret.), died on Saturday, July 27, 2013, surrounded by his family.  He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Frances Beeland Frakes; three children, LaRue Frakes Fields (Jeff), Stephen Alexander Frakes, and Sara Beeland Anderson (Mark Greenberg); eight grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by his first wife, Missie Alexander Frakes, in 1957.

Tut was born Jan.27, 1920 in Columbia, Tenn., where he lived with his parents, two brothers, and two sisters.  He graduated in Jan. 1943 from the United States Military Academy at West Point, was commissioned in the Army Air Corps, and went immediately to the European Theater.  There he flew P38s for the 34th Reconnaissance Squadron until May 1945 when the Germans surrendered.  He served in the Air Force until 1970.  He was stationed in England, the Panama Canal Zone, Washington, D.C., West Point, the Air Force Academy, Hawaii, Montgomery, and Atlanta.  While stationed in Washington, D.C., he earned a Masters of Business Administration at the George Washington University.  Highlights of his distinguished career include serving as the Assistant Athletic Director at the Air Force Academy, as Base Commander of Wheeler Air Force Base in Hawaii, as a member of the faculty of the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, and as head of the Air Force ROTC program at Georgia Tech.  His greatest contribution to his country was flying 52 combat missions in World War II, including flying over Normandy on D-Day.

After his retirement from the Air Force, he and his wife Frances moved to Greenville, Ala., where he became President of Natural Decorations, a floral products company located in Evergreen, Ala.  In 1986, he retired from Natural Decorations.  After retirement, he continued to enjoy traveling worldwide, spending time at Ono Island, participating in the Rotary Club of Greenville where he was a Paul Harris Fellow, and frequently visiting friends and family.  He will be remembered as a man of integrity, generosity, and kindness; as a role model for his children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and nieces and nephews; and as a part of the Greatest Generation.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 210 Church Street, Greenville, Alabama 36037 or the Rotary International Club of Greenville, P.O. Box 100, Greenville, Alabama 36037.

The family will receive friends from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, July 29, at 111 Herbert Street, Greenville, Ala.  The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, July 30, at St. Thomas Episcopal Church with The Reverend Reid McCormick officiating.

For online condolences, please visit www. dunklinanddanielsfh.com.