Merrill James Dodge

Merrill James "Jim" Dodge, aged 66, of Snellville, GA, passed away on September 4, 2024. He was born August 22nd, 1958 in Springfield, Massachusetts. Jim had been diagnosed with MDS in April but was going through chemo and on the way to a stem cell transplant when he encountered a stubborn bacteria/pneumonia that his body couldn’t overcome.
The guidelines for this type of notice say to write a “Summary of Life.” If there was a meme of that it would be the “One Does Not Simply (write a summary)…” It is too great to cover “simply.” Jim and his wife met 39 years ago in an apartment complex in Dunwoody, GA. She was the girl upstairs – the song “knock 3 times on the ceiling” was a favorite. They married, had 2 children and moved to Houston for 9 years, where they added another 2 children, their family was complete, if rather chaotic. Onward they moved to Massachusetts, where they lived for 17 years before returning to their home state of Georgia.
Jim loved his family dearly, he was an avid photographer and there are many many home videos from just about every occasion…..never mind the literal thousands of photos. Whether it was a birthday, anniversary, vacation, family get together or just for no reason at all, he had the camera ready. At the multitude of swim meets, baseball games, football games, awards ceremonies, graduations (multiply 4 times all the graduation ceremonies!), he was always there. Cheering, yelling the loudest so the child in question knew he was there and he was so very very proud.
Jim spoke several languages and could fix almost anything; there were very few things that would cause him to say “ok let’s call a professional.” That was just nonsense! At one point the children were sure he was a secret 007, he sold products internationally for many years and he lamented “what will they do when they find out I really am just an Igloo/Huffy Sports salesman?!” He moved on into the IT world in later years, he never met a computer that could best him. He loved the intricacies of automation and a favorite phrase was “I wonder if there is an app for that?” Now the blinds, lights, doors, thermostats, sprinkler system, home speaker/audio system, weather system, all are wondering where the guy with the magic touch went to make them all behave and work accordingly. His family will be figuring those out for a while and his wife wishes she had paid better attention. He loved football – his alma mater Penn State and the New England Patriots were on every weekend during the fall season, in fact the Patriots just won their recent game they were not slated to win and we are sure he had a hand in it.
Jim is survived by his loving wife, Lauren Dodge, and their four children: daughter Katie Dodge Sanders and her husband Steven Sanders with their two sons Max and Elliot, son Merrill Christopher Dodge and his wife Marianella Dodge, son Matthew Dodge, and daughter Olivia Dodge and her husband Marty Markenson. Jim is predeceased by his father Merrill Johnson Dodge, mother Dorothy Flowers Dodge, and brother Eric Dodge. Jim was one of five siblings; he leaves behind his 3 sisters Marcie, Lindy and Sara.
A celebration of life is being planned to honor Jim's memory. It will be held Saturday, September 21st at 4pm in the chapel at Dunwoody United Methodist Church with a reception afterwards. In lieu of flowers please donate or send donations to Atlanta Blood Services (www.atlantabloodservices.com), they were crucial in his fight with cancer.