Virginia’s Jim Mooney Dies Of Cancer Complications

Funeral services were held November 1 for former Virginia logger Jim Mooney, who helped found the American Loggers Council and went on to become its president, and who later helped found the Virginia Loggers Assn. and went on to become its first and only executive director. He died October 27 at his home near Charlottesville. He was 55 and had battled lung cancer since August 2013.

A forestry graduate of Virginia Tech, Mooney co-founded Piedmont Thinning and Harvesting, Inc. in 1983 and was among the first loggers in the state to embrace computers as a management tool. He exited the business in 1999. He became a contributing editor for Hatton-Brown Publishers in 2001, for years writing a regular column for Timber Harvesting and occasional feature articles for both Timber Harvesting and Southern Loggin’ Times.

His survivors include three children, one grandchild, one brother and parents.

The family requests that memorial contributions should be made to either the Hospice of the Piedmont, 675 Peter Jefferson Way, Suite 300, Charlottesville, VA 22911; or to the Jim Mooney Scholarship Fund, College of Natural Resources and Environment Conservation. Checks for the latter should be made payable to the Virginia Tech Foundation Inc. and sent to the Office of Gift Accounting, University Gateway Center, Virginia Tech, 902 Prices Fork Rd., Blacksburg, VA 24061.

The VLA is searching for candidates to interview for the executive director’s position. Interested parties may contact board member C.K. Green at 804-586-7198.