Helen James Minck of Lima and Clearwater, Fla., died on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2011. Born May 5, 1920, she was the daughter of Cletus and Vera Wolfe. She grew up in Toledo and Lima, and graduated in Physics from Wellesley College in Massachusetts where she met and married Harvard graduate Robert A. James, the founder of Raymond James Financial.
They moved to St. Petersburg in 1945. She had four children, Tom (Mary), Christopher (Debbie), Robin a.k.a. Sulara (Scott Young) and Wendy James Seldon.
During the early years, she was an avid champion golfer at Lakewood (St. Petersburg) Country Club and fisherwoman. She loved bridge, reading, dancing and traveling.
She was widowed in 1983, then met and married Richard Minck of Bluffton, who survives.Together, they were philanthropists and active participants socially, particularly interested in music (the Florida Orchestra) and the arts (St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts and the Dali Museum).
She is survived by her husband, children, grand-children Hunt James (Molly), Court James (April), Kerry Ashby (Kris), Jeremiah Jones (Liz), Jessalynn Jones and Michael Seldon, and four great-grandchildren.
There will be a celebration of her life on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, at 2 p.m., at Raymond James Financial (880 Carillon Parkway). In lieu of flowers, donations to the Florida Orchestra would be appreciated.
