James Henry Mathis, of Woodbridge, Va. Crossed the bar on 7/16/2021 at the age of 79.
He is survived by his wife Linda Lee Stone Mathis, of the same address; two sons, James Kelly Mathis of Charles Town W.V., and Charles Christopher Mathis of Mooresville, N.C.; five grandchildren, Grant, Hayden, and Landon Mathis all of Mooresville, N.C.; and Kaleb and Audrey Story of Charles Town, W.V.
Henry was born on May 17, 1942, in Rome Ga. The second son of “Sandy” and Annis Mathis. He graduated from Johnson High School (1960), Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Ala. (1965, BS), and George Washington University, Washington, D.C. (1976, MA).
Upon graduation from Jacksonville, he joined the U.S. Navy and attended Officers Candidate School at Newport, Rhode Island. Upon graduation he was stationed aboard the USS Constellation (CVA-64). After two tours of duty in Viet Nam he volunteered for and was accepted in the Basic Underwater Demolition/Seals (BUDS) training at Little Creek, Virginia. Upon graduation from (BUDS) training he was assigned to Under water Demolition Team 21 (now known as SEAL Team 4) in Little Creek where he served as Platoon Leader, Nuclear Weapons Officer, and Submersible Operations Officer.
After five years of military service Henry left the Navy and applied for and was accepted in the Federal Bureau of investigation (FBI) Special Agent training program. He served the FBI for seven years as a street agent with assignments in the Cincinnati Division and the Washington Field Office in Washington, D.C. and served the remaining eighteen years as a forensic scientist in the FBI Laboratory in Washington, D.C.
At Henrys request there will be no memorial services. He will “Rest in Peace” at the Quantico National Cemetery in Triangle, Virginia.
