FAMILY REQUESTS "NO FLOWERS". Instead, please consider contributions to: Saving Grace, P.O. Box 1649, Wake Forest, NC 27588 (http://savinggracenc.org) Veterans Leadership Council, Box 37087 Raleigh, NC 27627 (http://vlcnc-cares.org)

James Maurice Liles, Jr., 73, of Raleigh, died Saturday, February 6, 2016.

Mr. Liles was born in Monroe, NC on April 25, 1942 to James Maurice and Rachel Liles and graduated from Monroe High School. He left Pfeiffer College to join the US Air Force in 1962, later obtaining his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from North Carolina State University and a PhD from Case Western Reserve University.

Mr. Liles was a husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, coach, athlete, mentor, and an all-around caring man to all who knew him and shared the joy and unforgettable moments of life with him. While he was an avid supporter of NC State University and loved to talk about Wolfpack athletics, his passion was people and how they could better their lives. After his retirement from the NC Division of Community Assistance, he continued to use his PhD in Sociology as he volunteered with the Veterans Leadership Council of North Carolina, sharing his knowledge to assist with planning, obtaining funding for, and building a reintegration center for returning veterans that would provide them all the resources needed to successfully transition to civilian life. This project is proceeding as a result of the largest Community Block Grant in NC history. Active in the Democratic Party in Wake County and the State, he served as President of the Democratic Men of Wake County and as Precinct Chair.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Maurice and Rachel Liles. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Sara Stockton Liles; his son, James Maurice Liles, III and his wife, Renee, and son James Maurice Liles, IV; his daughter Doris Jean Liles and her son Dillon Hyde; and his brother Davis Hudson Liles of Charlotte.

The family will receive friends on Thursday, February 11 from 6 pm to 8 pm at Renaissance Funeral Home, 7615 Six Forks Road in Raleigh, and in Monroe, NC on Saturday, February 13 from 11 am to 1 pm at Gordon's Funeral Service, 1904 Lancaster Avenue, with a graveside service to follow.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Veterans Leadership Council at VLCNC-cares.org or to Saving Grace Animals for Adoption at savinggrace.org/donation.