James (Jim) Stone, the founder of the Stone’s Home Centers chain of stores, passed away on June 7 at Memorial Manor Nursing Home in Bainbridge, Ga. He was 94 years old, according to his obituary in The Post Searchlight.

Stone opened his first store in Bainbridge in April 1959, at the age of 41, with partner Charles Kirbo (now deceased). The chain now has nine stores located across southwest Georgia and north Florida.