James Livingston Ford, Jr.

James Livingston Ford, Jr, 77, of Lovingston, VA, passed away February 18, 2026, at Lynchburg General Hospital after battling pneumonia since Christmas Eve.

James was born April 11, 1948, to Frances Ellen Lohmann and James Livingston Ford in Philadelphia, PA and grew up in Moorestown, NJ, spending summers on the Rappahannock River at the family cottage near Welford’s Wharf, VA.

After graduating from Syracuse University and briefly living in a tree house in the woods of northern Vermont, James moved permanently to Virginia, spending some time in Richmond before joining an intentional community in Louisa County, Cuckoo Farm, where he met many dear, lifelong friends including the mother of his children. In the early 1980s, he ultimately settled in Nelson County, first in Roseland before later building a home for his family in the Davis Creak area.

Passionate about environmental issues, social justice, and world peace, James was involved in several community organizations, including the Martin Luther King, Jr Day Scholarship Committee and as a founding member and director of The Charlottesville Center for Peace and Justice.

Preceded in death by his mother and father, beloved sister Patricia, and his partner of eight years Emily Hunt, with whom he shared a cherished Jack Russell friend, Frank Sinatra.

James is survived by his former wife, Deborah Turel and their children, Jimmy and Esther, granddaughter Miriam, nieces Christina and Laura, and his first wife Barbara Cullings.

A memorial service will be held later this spring.

Arrangements by Wells/Sheffield Funeral Chapel, Lovingston (434-263-4097).