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JOHNSON, JAMES R. - 80, of Duluth, GA passed away on October 1, 2012. He was born June 6, 1932 in Knoxville, TN where he graduated from Rule High School. Jim attended Georgia Tech where he earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees. While at Georgia Tech, he played football on the 1952 National Championship Team. He also played on the 1955 team and was honored by making the All SEC Conference team for the 1956 season. Jim served in the U.S. Army from 1953-1955. He later worked as a manager for Printpack, Inc. in Atlanta. In 1969, he became an entrepreneur and inventor. He started his own company, initially called Atlanta MESCO, Inc. and later was known as AMI, Inc. The company was formed to design and create machinery for the packaging industry. During his tenure, Jim was awarded 4 U.S. Patents. He also created a company called Recpro, Inc, which designed and manufactured the reclosable plastic zipper. He owned the businesses until his retirement in 1999. Jim is survived by his wife of 59 years, Kathryn Johnson. He was preceded in death by his mother, Blanche Abrams; and his brother, Leslie Johnson. His survivors include his sons, Howie Johnson (Allison) of Canton, and Jon Johnson (Theresa) of Duluth, and his sister-in-law, Irma Johnson of Knoxville, TN. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Melissa Johnson Bradshaw (Eddie), Lauren Johnson Russell (Chris), Kathleen Johnson, Jeffrey Johnson, Connor Johnson, Mary Johnson, and Sydney Johnson. Jim is also survived by several nieces and nephews. Visitation will be held at Wages and Sons Gwinnett Chapel, 1031 Lawrenceville Hwy., Lawrenceville, GA (770)277-4550 at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, October 10 with a memorial service following at 11:00 a.m. After the memorial service, there will be a military interment ceremony at the Georgia National Cemetery, 1080 Veterans Cemetery Rd., Canton, GA at 2:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made in Jim's name to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research at www.michaeljfox.org.


Published in Knoxville News Sentinel from October 6 to October 7, 2012