James Harry Meacham
James Harry Meacham of Lady Lake, FL passed away on December 19, 2023 from lung cancer. Jim was born in Baltimore, MD on December 28, 1945 to Harry Carleton and Ethel Shirley Meacham. He grew up in Catonsville and started working at Maryland Telecommunications building circuit boards while still in middle school. He worked there until he graduated high school from McDonogh in 1963 and went on to graduate from the University of Delaware in 1967 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering. He was a member of Phi Kappa Tau
fraternity. Upon his college graduation, he was hired by Westinghouse which later became Northrop Grumman and he retired from there in 2003.
Jim and his first wife Roberta settled in Maryland, living first in Laurel and then building a house in Arnold. He loved sailing on the Magothy River and cruising up and down the Chesapeake Bay, owning several boats over the years. He and his second wife Nancy later moved to Severna Park and then Arnold again where he served on the neighborhood board and continued to enjoy life on the water until Nancy’s passing in 2017. Jim had several motorcycles which he loved to use for travel and exploring. He was an eternal tinkerer and loved collecting old Kodak cameras and antique radios that he restored. Jim did extensive research on the Meacham family history. In later years, he enjoyed wood carving and watching tennis as well as music and movies of all kinds. He believed in learning something new every day and his library included a wide range of topics.
Professionally, Jim holds five patents for miniature camera technology and he worked on multiple high security programs. At Westinghouse, he built the world’s smallest TV camera at that time and worked on one of the Apollo cameras which is still on the moon today. In his later years at Northrop Grumman, he became involved in developing venture capital for medical advancements using defense technology. Retiring at the age of 58 from Northrop Grumman, he was a consultant with Signal Systems for several years working on underwater submersibles and acoustic sonar.
Jim loved to travel both domestically and internationally in retirement and particularly enjoyed his second homes in both Crisfield, MD and Lady Lake, FL.
He was known for generously supporting local charities and food banks in both locations, always helping out neighbors who might need tutoring or help around their house. Moving to Florida full-time in 2021, he and partner Kate Iehle loved going to the beach and exploring all the local thrift stores. Their five years together were full of laughter and much happiness. In his final months, she was a strong advocate and caregiver for him, bringing him much comfort.
Jim is survived by partner Kate Iehle of The Villages, FL, daughter Liane Meacham of Annapolis, MD, son David L. Meacham of Seattle, WA, stepson David (Mauria) Fegley of Pasadena, MD; grandchildren Bethany Turner, Olivia (Michael) Pearson, Rudy Loftin and Josslyn Fegley; sister Bonnie Hanson and brother David (Jana) Meacham as well as his nieces and nephew.
A Celebration of Life for Jim will be held Sunday, April 7, 2024 at 12:00 noon at The Atreeum at Soaring Timbers in Annapolis, MD. Please RSVP to jimcelebration24@gmail.com.
Donations in Jim’s honor may be made to The Wildwood Food Pantry at Wildwood United Methodist Church, 300 Mason Street, Wildwood, FL 34785 or your local food bank.