James Terry Tolerton

James (Terry) Tolerton passed away at his home in Hilton Head, SC on Saturday August 24.

Terry was preceded in death by his wife of 53 years Judith Rennels Tolerton, father Robert I. Tolerton, mother Hazel Inman Tolerton and brothers Robert Tolerton and Joel Tolerton. Terry is survived by his three children Will Tolerton(Marci) of Breckenridge CO, John Tolerton(Kalina) of Bluffton, SC and Christina Harrell(Eric) of Greenville, SC and seven grandchildren Michael Tolerton(Nicolette), Tristan Tolerton, Kylie Tolerton, Jackson Tolerton, Ashton Tolerton, James T. Harrell and Grace Harrell and two great grandchildren Oliver Tolerton and Lennon Tolerton.

Terry was born in Alliance Ohio on July 21, 1942 and grew up in Alliance. He developed a love of skiing and an obsession with golf that continued throughout his entire life. He was the captain of the Alliance High School golf team and was inducted into the AHS Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1960, Terry continued his education and golf career at The Ohio State University where played with Tom Weiskopf, his roommate and Ed Sneed. During a winter break in college, Terry attended a party at the Zang house where he reunited with a childhood friend and neighbor Judy Rennels. Judy was the love of his life and they enjoyed 53 years chasing their dreams together.

 After graduating from Ohio State in 1965, Terry enlisted in the US Air Force officer training program. After training he served two tours in Vietnam as a Joint Tactical Air Controller.

 After completing his service in the Air Force, Terry became the Eastern US Regional Sales Manager for Bridgestone Tire where he quickly became the #1 salesperson in a global company.

 In 1972 Terry used his entire life savings to acquire a four bay Goodyear retail tire store at the corner of Park and Market in Alliance, OH. He started this small business with three employees but it would grow exponentially over the years. In the early 1980s with the goal of improving his buying prices, Terry started doing a little bit of wholesale distribution. In 2014 when Terry’s Tire Town was sold it was the 2nd largest tire distribution company in the United States with customers on every continent and in every state.

Terry’s Tire Town employed 655 employees in 11 distribution centers in Ohio, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire. Terry’s Tire Town was a leader in bringing new ideas and technology to the customers they served. In 1992 Terry’s Tire Town was the first tire distributor to provide B2B e-commerce connectivity allowing wholesale customers to view inventory, pricing and order tires.

Throughout Terry’s life there were two constants: his love of golf and love and commitment to his family. He was a two time club champion at both Alliance Country Club and Belfair Country Club. When his beloved wife Judy suffered from dementia his love and commitment to care for her was unrivaled. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and many in the tire industry that were inspired by his leadership.

Terry’s family will receive guests at the Alliance Country Club 725 E Milton St. Alliance, OH 4601 on Sunday, October 13th starting at 1:30 p.m. A memorial service will be held at 3:00 p.m. with a reception to follow. 

In lieu of flowers, consider a donation to: Habitat for Humanity ReStore Alliance (https://shorturl.at/LfOsq), Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (https://shorturl.at/81A4W), Alzheimer’s Association (https://shorturl.at/K9YCE), or Hospice of the Lowcountry (https://hospicecarelc.org/donate/).