James M Warrington

James Malcolm Warrington, known to family and friends as Jim, was born on September 19, 1926, in Boston, MA. During the Great Depression, his family moved several times including to Philadelphia and Little Rock, before settling in Arlington where Jim graduated from Washington-Lee High School in 1944. He then attended Virginia Military Institute for one semester before he was drafted into the U.S. Army where he served during World War II. He was deployed to Munich, Germany, immediately after the end of the war where he worked on securing and rebuilding the city which had been heavily destroyed by bombing during the war. In Germany, Jim developed a love of German beer. American soldiers were given a ration of American beer and cigarettes; Jim didn’t smoke so he traded his cigarettes with the Germans for German beer and the occasional ride around town. Seventy years later, Jim still loved listening to the songs he remembered from his time in Munich, especially Marlene Dietrich’s version of Lili Marleen. 

When his enlistment was over, he returned to VMI where he graduated in 1950 with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature. While finishing his degree at VMI after the war, Jim joined the newly created U.S. Air Force ROTC program. The USAF had only been created as a separate branch of the military in 1947 and Jim, who loved planes, was eager to join. After graduation, he served in the USAF reserves while working in the Department of Defense and National Security Agency. While Jim was at NSA, he helped his future brother-in-law James Leister by informing him that the NSA would hire him despite his “1A” draft status in the Korean War. No other potential employer James Leister had contacted would do so. Jim Warrington continued that not only would NSA hire him, but that after he was drafted and had undergone basic training, instead of being sent to Korea or elsewhere, he would be ordered back to continue intelligence work at NSA near D.C. as a uniformed soldier. 

After five years working at the NSA, he returned to VMI to work for the VMI Foundation. After a short time back at VMI, Jim was called by the Lord, Jesus Christ, to become a Reverend. He graduated from seminary school at Sewanee: The University of the South and subsequently became ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church on June 28, 1960. He initially served as assistant clergy at several churches, including one in New Jersey where in his spare time he earned a Masters in Business Administration from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1966. 

Right after earning his MBA, Jim enlisted in the USAF as a military chaplain to serve in the Vietnam War. Jim’s desire to to be a priest, and more specifically a military chaplain, was inspired by having known and deeply respected the Reverend George L. Fox who had been the rector at the church his family attended during summer vacations in Vermont. Rev. Fox was one of the “Four Chaplains” who heroically gave their lives trying to save others during the sinking of the SS Dorchester, which was torpedoed by a German U-Boat in 1943. While in Active Duty in the Air Force Jim served at Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Vietnam, Texas, South Dakota, and then worked at Arlington National Cemetery for eighteen months performing funerals for soldiers killed in action in Vietnam. He later returned to Germany where he served at Ramstein Air Base. After retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel, Jim worked as a civil servant for the Navy at NAVAIR. He also served as an chaplain on base at Fort Meyer, at the Civil Air Patrol, and with the USS Warrington veterans group for many years. The USS Warrington was named after Lewis Warrington, a distant cousin of Jim Warrington. 

At the end of his military career, Jim settled in Northern Virginia, residing for decades in Falls Church. Until Jim entered Goodwin House Bailey’s Crossroads in 2010, he lived an extremely simple life, without television, internet, or even air-conditioning. His brother-in-law James Leister jokingly referred to him as a “monk”; his life was filled with God, books, friends, and his beloved model train collection. He made many friends in the model train community and often travelled to train meets up and down the East Coast. Jim was known as a kind, loving, and intelligent man and his generous spirit will be remembered by all who had the pleasure of knowing him.  He was deeply proud of his service to God and country and of having been both a World War II and Vietnam War Veteran. 

On August 17, 2022, at the age of ninety-five years and eleven months, Jim went to meet his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He was preceded in death by his of parents Lester B. Warrington and Helen L. Brackett Warrington, his sister Carol L. Warrington Leister, and his dearly loved cats, including Prince who passed away on August 6 of this year. Jim is survived by his nephew Warren Leister, who was by his side while he passed, niece Kathy Leister, niece by marriage Ann Ward Leister, grand-niece Jennifer Ann Leister, and many friends. He was deeply loved and will be dearly missed. 

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