James Allen Maddy died Monday, March 13, 2023; he was 85 years old. He is survived by his loving wife of 60 years, Judith Whitsitt Maddy; their children Jim (Christine) Maddy, Jeff Maddy, Julie (Tom) Haider, Jeanie Maddy, Jin-Joo Maddy, and Jo-Lin (Mike) Stephenson; their grandchildren Sarah (Zach) Hamilton, Nicholas (Elise) Maddy, Natalie Maddy, Alex (Jacoby) Hinton, June Haider, Danielle Maddy, and Katie (Mike) Grage; and great-grandchildren Zoe Maddy, Sheridan Maddy, Sundance Maddy, and Max Grage.
James was born in Roanake, Virginia to Bob and Dorothy Maddy, on March 1, 1938. He grew up in Los Alamos, New Mexico. He went to college in Nashville, Tennessee at Vanderbilt University, then attended Vanderbilt School of Medicine. He met his wife, Judy, while working as a third-year medical student at Vanderbilt Hospital on the floor on which she was the head nurse. They were married, June 2, 1962, four months after their first date.
After marrying, they lived in Nashville and had their first child. They then moved to Lexington, Kentucky, in the mid-60s and had three more children. They moved to Casper 52 years ago. During the 1970s, they adopted two children from Korea.
Dr. Maddy had a private practice as an internal medicine specialist at Casper Clinic. He was one of the first endocrinologists in Wyoming and cared for most of the diabetic persons in Casper. He opened the first Wyoming Osteoporosis Center in the late 1990s and continued this practice until 2020. He served on the Wyoming Board of Medicine and was appointed as governor for a number of years.
He was an avid fly fisherman and went on yearly fishing trips for decades to the Middle Fork of the Powder River, in Hole in the Wall country outside Kaycee, Wyoming, with his brothers-in-law, Tom and Sam Whitsitt, and friend Larry Giddings.
He had a great sense of humor and loved to tell stories and jokes. He loved the outdoors and took his family on camping trips every summer. He happily coached his sons in the Casper Midget Football Association when they were young and was not so happily made to sit through dance recitals for his daughters; he loved to dance (the jitterbug with his wife and kids and grandkids), cook (his famous Dad's soup), and read stories to his grandkids and greatgrandkids. He and his wife also shared a love for animals and always had a houseful of dogs and cats.
A memorial service will take place at 2:00 PM, Saturday, March 18, 2023 at the First United Methodist Church. The service will be webcast via Casper FUMC on YouTube. The Maddy family asks that in lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the Casper Humane Society in his name.
Arrangements are under the direction of Newcomer Casper. To leave the family a special message, please select the "Share Memories" option.