Dr. James Joseph Lanter, who formerly worked and lived in Pocahontas County, passed away in his sleep Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Born in Marion, Illinois, in 1936, he was a son of the late Joseph and Kathryn Lanter. He served in the United States Army for two years, stationed in Korea. He graduated from Purdue University in 1964 and received his Ph.D. in psychology from the Catholic University of America in 1971. He worked for the Veterans Administration for 25 years and served as Chief of Psychology Services at VAs in Wichita, Kansas and Salem, Virginia. Upon retirement, he worked for 15 years as a ski instructor at Snowshoe. In 2008, at the age of 72, Dr. Lanter was ordained as an Episcopal priest after completing studies at Virginia Theological Seminary. He served the West Virginia diocese for seven years as priest at St. John’s in Marlinton, and at Chapel on the Mount at Snowshoe. In 2015, Dr. Lanter and his wife relocated to Lubbock, Texas, where he performed occasional services at St. Luke’s in Levelland, Texas. In addition to his love for skiing, Dr. Lanter enjoyed painting, hiking and bridge. He loved traveling and visited all 50 states, riding his bike across several of them! He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Dr. Joyce Lanter, of Lubbock, Texas; his children, Dr. Patricia Dufty, of Norwich, Vermont, Joseph Lanter, of Virginia City, Montana, Kathleen Baughan, of Richmond, Virginia, and Jamie Lanter, of Blacksburg, Virginia; step-daughters, Dr. Sindee Simon, of Lubbock, Texas, and Ashley Simon Clifton, of Wichita, Kansas; grandchildren, Brendan and Hope Dufty, Kathleen and Lilly Baughan, and Sophie, Mia and Ian Lanter; and siblings, Mary Halde of Troy, Illinois, Patricia Armstrong, of Southfield, Michigan, and Thomas Lanter, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. A virtual memorial service will be held Saturday, May 23, 2020, at 3 p.m. (eastern standard time); contact Sue Owen at 304-572-3333 for the zoom link. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in honor of Dr. James Joseph Lanter to support outreach in Snowshoe and Marlinton. Donations can be sent to either the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia, 1608 Virginia St. East, P.O. Box 5400, Charleston, WV 25361 (www.wvdiocese.org); or to Sue Owen, Chapel on the Mount, 354 Locust Glen Drive, Slaty Fork, WV 26291.
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