Dr. Jim Pruitt

Dr. Jim Pruitt, 76, of Seneca, SC passed away on Tuesday morning, February 8, 2011 after a brief illness. Jim is survived by Martha, his beloved wife of 40 years, his children Sally Pruitt Robinson of Charleston, SC, Tom Pruitt of Charlotte, NC, Rhett Pruitt Hoff of Missoula, MT, Nicole Lopez-Pruitt of Hermosillo, Mexico, and Joshua Pruitt of Park City, Utah. Jim also had six grandchildren: Michael, David, and Peter Pruitt of Charlotte, NC, Henry and Sietze Hoff of Missoula, MT, and Paloma Lopez-Pruitt of Hermosillo, Mexico. Jim is also survived by his sisters Cecilia Pruitt Gruber and Lydia Pruitt Davidson of Charleston, SC. Jim grew up in Rock Hill, SC, son of the late Thomas Cecil and Elizabeth Deason Pruitt. He received a bachelor’s degree of science from the Citadel in Charleston, SC and a Doctor of Medicine degree from the Medical College of South Carolina. He went on to practice medicine for the next fifty years serving as the Directory of Laboratories and Chief of Pathology at Oconee Memorial Hospital for thirty-seven years in addition to long tenures as Director of Laboratories and Chief of Pathology at Stephens County Hospital in Toccoa, Georgia and Cannon Memorial Hospital in Pickens, South Carolina. Jim was a board member, Medical Director and a dedicated advocate for the Rosa Clark Clinic and a longtime board member of the Blood Connection. The joy of Jim’s life was his family: his beloved wife Martha, his five children, and his six grandchildren. Jim had many interests; he loved reading, music, plants, and sailing, but his greatest passion, besides his family, was flying. He was curious about everything, and loved to talk about everything from alternative medicine to quantum mechanics to his one hundred favorite movies of all time. Jim respected the innate dignity of people from every walk of life. Kind, gentle, and generous, Jim was a man who held nothing back—whether it was time, effort, love, his appreciation for barbecue, or his opinions on government interference. As the saying goes, he “lived large”—packing every possible bit of joy into his days. Those of us (and there are many) who loved Jim are grateful for the example he set of how to live—and for what he brought to our lives. He will be missed. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Rosa Clark Clinic, 210 South Oak Street, Seneca SC 29678, or the Oconee County Humane Society, Inc. PO Box 966, West Union SC 29696. Visitation will be Thursday, February 10 from 6-8 pm, Davenport Funeral Home, West Union SC. A private memorial service will be held at a later date.