James E. "Buck" Cannon

The world lost a loving, witty man on Friday night. He was beloved by people everywhere he lived, and was especially admired by younger people he "mentored" through the years. He was a loving fun husband and father and gave us such a wonderful life. His two year fight against cancer was valiant and he beat the odds in living much longer than expected. We will miss him greatly. James E. (Buck) Cannon was born in Thornton, TX, (population 432) to James Barnett Cannon and Virginia Ann Buck Cannon. The family moved to Mexia, TX in 1940 for Buck's 1st grade school year. He was a Boy Scout, quarterback on the Mexia Blackcats football team and president of his senior class of Mexia High School. He enrolled at Tarleton State College in 1951 and became battalion commander of the corp of cadets and commander of the Wainwright Rifles, a crack drill team that won many awards. In 1953 he entered the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, where he was president of the freshman class and quarterback of the freshman football team. After a cruise on the "Eagle", a three masted sailing ship to Santander, Spain, Amsterdam and Copenhagen, with a 26 day return to New London, he knew he did not like the ocean. He resigned from the academy in January, 1955 and entered Texas Technological College. His entry into the energy business started there with a part time job for an independent oil and gas company, working in the offices during the academic year and in the fields in the summers. At Tech he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. He and Kay Robinson, of Plainview, Texas, were married September 7, 1957, and he graduated from Tech in May 1958 with a BS degree in Industrial Management and minors in mathematics and industrial engineering. He was the first gas supply trainee for Oklahoma Natural Gas, headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He became assistant superintendent of gas supply there, but left for Colorado Interstate Gas Company in Colorado Springs, CO. In 1965, he became Director of Marketing, with sales of 1 billion cubic feet of gas per day to distribution customers, industrial users, and other interstate pipelines. During the period of time 1972 - 1994, he was a corporate vice-president for three significant gas companies, covering marketing of natural gas (500 million cubic feet per day), gas liquids(25, 000 barrels per day) and crude oil (18, 000 barrels per day) in several southwestern states. In 1994 Buck became chairman of the board of Hadson Corporation, selling the company to Louisville Gas and Electric of Louisville, KY. From 1995 to 2000 he was an energy consultant for Benchmark Oil and Gas of Denver, CO and Highland Energy of Dallas, TX. Over the years Buck has been active in many industry committees regarding future gas requirements and natural gas deliverability in the United States. 2000 found he and Kay moving to Burnsville, NC to be nearer family in Raleigh, and then to Asheville in 2005. He was active in an Episcopal Church in every city where they were living, finishing at Trinity Episcopal, Asheville, serving as chalice bearer, vestry member, senior warden and stewardship chair. He was a passionate fly fisherman, and spent many summers at the family cabin on the Taylor River near Almont, Colorado pursuing the wily brown trout. He also became an avid golfer later in life, enjoying both the challenge of the sport and the good-natured needling that inevitably arises in a spirited foursome. He was also known to enjoy a daily glass or two of Scotch, often to celebrate that day's big fish or clutch putt. Buck was preceded in death by his parents, younger brother Carl Allen and daughter Ann Elizabeth Cannon Smith. Survivors include his wife Kay of 58 years, brother Joe and wife Debbie of Mexia, TX, son Jim and wife Molly of Raleigh, grandchildren Drew of Boston, MA, Maria of UNC Law School, and Chris of University of Tennessee, niece JoAl Sheridan and Dirk Sheridan and nephew Thure and wife Shannon, all of Austin, TX. Service will be held on July 20 at 11:00 am at Trinity Episcopal Church, 60 Church Street, Asheville, North Carolina 28801. Interment and reception will follow in Tuton Parish Hall. Memorials should be made to the Lake Logan Foundation, 25 Wormy Chestnut Lane, Canton, NC 28716, or to the Ann Cannon Smith endowment for music at Trinity Episcopal Church. Groce Funeral Home at Lake Julian is assisting the family.