James David Winter

James David Winter (“Jim”) was born in Louisville, Ky. on March 23, 1925 to James Emil Winter and Margaret May Dugan Winter.

Jim was the oldest of three children and is survived by his brother, William Perry Winter of Indianapolis, Ind., and his sister, Margaret Winter White (A. Franklin White) of Louisville, Ky.

Their father was a doctor and their mother was a nurse, both of whom served in WW I in France.

The family enjoyed a lot of travel and outdoor recreation. At age 17 Jim swam one mile across the Ohio River, which had not only a lot of current with undertows, but was busy with traffic from commercial boating.

As a result of his family military service, Jim enlisted in the Army in WWII and served in Panama where transport ships brought German prisoners of war through the canal.

Jim told stories about his conversations with English-speaking German officers who said: “The war was going just fine until the United States entered the war!”

Following WWII, Jim met Mildred Gatliff Conn of Lancaster, Ky. at a church function in Louisville and they married June 7, 1948.

Jim and Mildred had three children -- David, Elizabeth and Kathryn. In 1955 the family moved to Arizona where hiking and camping became family favorite activities. Jim’s newfound interest in hiking led him to hike the high points in every state, with the exception of Denali.

He was an active member of the Sierra Club and Arizona Mountaineering Club for many years. At age 80, his doctor recommended he discontinue further hiking. Jim and Mildred also enjoyed travel and visited 66 countries.

Jim received his B.A. and law degree from the University of Louisville and a Master’s of Law in Taxation from New York University.

During his career as an attorney, Jim was employed by the federal government, the State of Arizona and three law firms. Jim was an assistant attorney general of Arizona from 1965 to 1989. That period included service as chief counsel in the Tax Division of the Office of the Attorney General.

His career included taking 17 cases to the U.S. Supreme Court where he prevailed on 16 of the case decisions. During his tenure in the Office of the Attorney General, his court case victories saved the state of Arizona over $100 million in tax revenues. Jim was a member of the Kentucky and Arizona Bar Associations.

Jim was active in civic organizations and church work. He was a past governor of the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Arizona and served on church and hospital boards, often as president.

Jim possessed a positive spiritual quality and was known to his family and friends as “a prince of a man.”

Just 10 days prior to his passing quietly in his sleep on May 17, 2015, Jim, at age 90, passed on these words of wisdom to his daughter: “The best thing to do is make the best of the situation you have for as long as you have the opportunity to do it.”

Jim’s wife, Mildred, and son, David, predeceased him.

In addition to his brother and sister, he is survived by his two daughters, Elizabeth Winter of Fountain Hills and Kathryn Winter Whittaker (Scott Whittaker) of Scottsdale. He is also survived by his two grandchildren, Jessica Whittaker Crozier (Brett Crozier) of Scottsdale and Geoffrey Whittaker of Flagstaff. Jim is also survived by his two great- grandchildren, Emma Crozier and Mason Crozier of Scottsdale.

A graveside service was held at East Lawn Cemetery on Grant Blvd. in Tucson on Sunday, May 24.

For those wishing to make a tribute in memory of Jim, the family suggests donations to the Nature Conservancy in honor of the Jim Winter family’s love of nature and the outdoors.