James Settles
James Settles: Passed away on January 10, 2023 at the age of 94.
July 13, 1928 - January 10, 2023 James Edgar Settles, 94, of Laguna Niguel, California went home to his heavenly father on January 10, 2023. His faith and devotion to Jesus, coupled with the love of his children and grandchildren, gave him peace in his final days with us. Jim was an only child born in Glendale, California on July 13, 1928 to the late Edgar Washington Settles of Illinois and the late Beatrice Elaine Musselle, of Canada.
Jim graduated from Huntington Park High School in 1946, and Pepperdine University with an undergraduate degree in Business in 1950. At Pepperdine, he was a 4-year member of the varsity tennis team and founding member of the Beachcomber fraternity of student-athletes. Following graduation from Pepperdine, Jim was drafted and served in the US Army. He was deployed to the Korean War and served 18 months in a tank on the front lines. Upon returning from combat, he accepted a position at Union Bank in Los Angeles, beginning a 50-year career in banking and commercial real estate lending. After meeting Jaqueline Shannon on a blind date in Laguna Beach, the couple wed a year later on November 6, 1953 in Glendale.
Jim and Jacque were married for 63 years and were blessed with three loving children: Allison, Jim Jr., and Paul. They raised their children in Glendale according to Proverbs 22:6: "train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it."
When their children were grown, Jim and Jacque moved to Laguna Niguel where they spent the next quarter century together. Jim was a covenant husband, devoted father and grandfather. His most cherished moments were those with family - worshiping, traveling, and playing tennis.
Jim also loved listening to jazz music and attending live concerts with family and close friends. Jim was passionate about tennis - playing, coaching, and volunteering to grow the sport. He was an accomplished junior player before representing Pepperdine at the highest level of collegiate tennis. He continued to play while serving in the military, and competed in adult and family tournaments for over six decades. He obtained No. 1 national rankings in multiple divisions well into his eighties. Jim coached at Glendale High School, gave tennis lessons, and sold and installed tennis nets and windscreens on occasion. He was a longtime volunteer for the Southern California Tennis Association on both junior and adult committees.
The Settles family was recognized as the SCTA Family of the Year in 1999. As a devoted man of faith, Jim was an elder at Grandview Presbyterian Church and a member of both Hollywood Presbyterian Church and Laguna Niguel Presbyterian Church. As a pillar of the LNPC community, he sang in the church choir and led bible studies from The Message with wife Jacque at their home. For many years he also taught a weekly bible study at nearby Del Obispo Terrace Senior Living and was a dedicated volunteer with Habitat for Humanity of Orange County.
Jim is survived by his daughter Allison Jensen (Jay), his sons Jim Jr. (Carol), Paul (Kathy), and his grandchildren Ian, Ryley, Finn, Christian, Sarah, James, and Caleb. He was preceded in death by his wife Jacqueline in 2017.