James William 'Bill' Lassiter was born May 28, 1920 in Newton County, Georgia to Elwood Gray Lassiter, Sr. and Georgia Salter Lassiter. Excellence in academics earned him a scholarship to the University of Georgia, where he participated in ROTC and graduated in 1941 with a reserve commission as 2nd Lieutenant and was ordered to active duty May 21, 1941 in the horse cavalry in Troop A, 9th Cavalry (2nd Cavalry Division) at Fort Riley, KS. With the horse cavalry obsolete in war, he transferred to the Army Air Corps and received orders to Mobile Air Depot. His outfit was ordered to the Caribbean area in the 5th Air Force where he served as Supply Officer in Puerto Rico and Jamaica for over two years. He was promoted to Captain on May 18, 1943. Bill was ordered to the Pacific and served on Guam with the 20th Air Force until Japan surrendered. Bill was discharged from active duty on January 2, 1946. Bill's highest active duty rank was Captain, but he was promoted to Major on January 22, 1947 before his release from the reserves July 15, 1953. His two brothers, E.G., Jr. and Luke also served during the war. Bill married Mary Sue Kitchens on Oct 5, 1947. He returned to the University of Georgia in 1951 and received his Masters degree, followed by his PhD in 1954 from the University of Illinois. In December 1954, he joined the University of Georgia as an Assistant Professor, dividing his time between teaching and research. During his career at UGA, he received honors, awards and recognitions too numerous to mention, had many papers published in scientific journals, and co-authored a college textbook in Animal Nutrition. He was awarded multiple Distinguished Teacher Awards and is listed in Who's Who in American Men of Science. On July 1, 1981, Bill retired from UGA and maintains Professor Emeritus status. Bill spent the early years of his retirement researching family histories and has published two books on the Lassiter and Kitchens families. Bill and Mary have two children, Lynda Lassiter Haynie and J.W. Lassiter, Jr., four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Bill and Mary left their long time Athens, Georgia home and moved back to Covington, Georgia in 2008, where they continue to enjoy retirement.