Obituary of James Edward Corbin
James (Jim) Edward Corbin, 67, of Sylva, NC passed
away with his wife at his side on June 4, 2021 at
Memorial Mission Hospital in Asheville.
Jim was born in Asheville, NC on December 17, 1953
and was preceded in death by his parents, the late
Barbara Cooke Corbin and John Franklin Corbin, Jr. of
Sylva and brother, Robert Joseph Corbin of Sylva.
Jim grew up in Atlanta, GA and Birmingham, AL but
visited his grandparents occasionally in Sylva. He
attended the University of California at Berkeley on a
football scholarship and later spent a year with the
professional football team, the Washington Redskins.
Jim graduated from Western Carolina University in 1988
with a degree in Biology. He worked for the North
Carolina Extension Service but spent the majority of his
career at the North Carolina Department of Agriculture.
Although he lived in different states, Jim always loved
the beauty of the mountains. He dedicated the
majority of his working career to preserving native
plants of the Great Smoky Mountains and in particular
ginseng. His creativity allowed him to generate unique
protective marking programs to protect plants in the
Great Smoky Mountains. His different techniques were
featured in National Wildlife, The New Yorker, and also
used by the U. S. Navy to protect species of turtles.
In his spare time, Jim was an avid gardener and was
known to nurture house plants thought to be dead and
bring them back to life with his green thumb. He
enjoyed wood carving, painting, playing the banjo, and
creating bonsai.
Jim is survived by his wife of 41 years, Renee Corbin and
two daughters, Courtney of Syracuse, NY and Tia Corbin
of Sylva, NC. In lieu of flowers, the family requests
donations to the Friends of the Smokies organization at
https://friendsofthesmokies.org/ to continue to protect
and preserve native plants in the Great Smoky
Mountains.
Cremation arrangements have been entrusted to
Appalachian Funeral Services.
No services are planned at this time at the final request
of the deceased.
