James Patrick Terra Fucillo was born on June 25, 1975 in Merced, California. He passed on December 20, 2022, at the age of 47, after a six year journey with cancer.
James grew up in Atwater, California with his mom and dad, Kathy and Vince Fucillo. He had a special childhood surrounded by his five aunts and his feisty grandfather, Lionel “Papa” Terra. He was a proud falcon from Atwater High School, class of ‘93, where he played baseball and revered his favorite teacher, Ms. Brewer. Some of his funniest stories were from his time as a bag boy at Save Mart. He went on to Merced Community College and transferred to Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo (SLO), where he graduated with a degree in Graphic Communication.
While at Cal Poly, James met his future wife, Jaimie, and they never looked back. In 2022, they celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary.
James had friends everywhere. Whether he was walking down the streets of SLO, or the little town of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania– you can almost guarantee someone would shout a friendly “James!” Or stop to compliment his shoes, his jacket, his backpack. He had a lifelong love for art, design, and craftsmanship.
There was nothing James couldn’t learn or do. He was a serial entrepreneur, managing two successful businesses– a real estate brokerage, and a menswear shop in downtown SLO called Office Hours. He studied construction, architecture, and real estate. He renovated three houses and helped countless families to find their homes. He taught himself to hem jeans. He could make a perfect cappuccino, with latte art. His barbecue was legendary. He recently fell in love with bonsai– collecting trees and visiting Chinese and Japanese gardens up and down the west coast.
And he saw the world. He wrestled marlin with his dad in Mexico. Climbed the peaks of Machu Picchu. Nodded off on the second story of a red double decker bus ride around London. He ate chocolate lava cake every night with Emily in Paris, hiked the Spanish Sierra Nevada, and drank prosecco on the rooftops overlooking the Roman Pantheon. He drove Route 66 with his mom to Sedona. He took his boys dog-sledding in Banff and snorkeling in Maui. Yet his most favorite places were closer to home– looking out over Half Dome in Yosemite, and on the sidelines of his sons’ soccer games.
James is profoundly missed by his wife Jaimie, and his two sons, Jacob James (age 13), and Nathaniel James (age 11) of San Luis Obispo. He is survived by his mother Kathy Fucillo of Atwater, his sister’s family, Erin and Bryan Tassey of Atwater, and his brother’s family, Brett and Trisha Fucillo of Los Banos. His dad, Vince, also passed away too soon in 2021. James was an exceptional co-captain in life, a loving and pragmatic dad, a loyal friend, big brother, and mentor to many. We will love and miss him forever.