James McGrath Obituary

James C. McGrath III passed away on December 15th, 2025 at his home in the Lakes of Litchfield.

Born on May 25, 1942 in Davenport, Iowa, Jim was the son of the late James Charles McGrath II and the late Mary Genevieve (Clarke) McGrath.

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame in 1964, Jim received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1967. Shortly after graduation he became a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, serving in Baltimore and New York. He was also a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, DC. Jim met his wife Sherbourne (Sherby) Everett during this time and they were married on April 11, 1970.

He joined the American Express Company where he rose to serve as Senior Vice President-Security for 11 years, directing a worldwide security staff until he resigned in 1989 to form his own company, McGrath International, Inc.

In 1985, Jim was appointed a charter member of the U.S. Department of State's Overseas Security Advisory Council and was asked by the Secretary of State to serve on the Accountability Review Board investigating the 1988 assassination of the U.S. Defense Attache in Athens, Greece. He was a member of a number of professional associations including the American Society for Industrial Security, chairing its White Collar Crime Committee, and the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators, serving on its Executive Advisory Board.

Jim has been a long-time member of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI and has served several terms as chairman of its local Carolina Grand Strand Chapter.

Jim and Sherby moved to DeBordieu in 1993 and quickly became involved in the local community. In 1996 he served as chairman of the transition committee when the DeBordieu Colony developers were turning the Club over to the members. In 1998 he became president of DeBordieu Club, a position he held for three years. He was vice chairman of the finance committee for Georgetown County's Vision 2 and chaired the Sheriff's Advisory Board for 12 years. For five years he worked on the Tastes of Pawleys event which benefits Father Pat's Lunch Kitchen at Precious Blood of Christ Catholic Church and also served on the Capital Campaign Committee for the church's Parish Life Center.

Jim was known for his quick wit, dry sense of humor and generosity. He and his wife enjoyed traveling and the friendships they made on their journeys. While at home he liked sitting on the porch, first at DeBordieu and then at the Lakes at Litchfield, reading a good book.

He is survived by niece Patricia (Van Hecke) McCarthy of Iowa City, IA, nephews, D. Charles Van Hecke (Cathy Baechle) of Chicago, IL, Peter Van Hecke of Kensington, MD, and Patrick McGrath of Lawrence, KS, niece and nephew-in-law Susan Everett and Peter Riccio of Boulder, CO, grandniece Ella Riccio, grandnephew Evan (Emily Boylan) McCarthy, grandniece Marie McCarthy (Tori Nelson), sister-in-law Kathy McGrath, and dear friends Steele Wilson-Bremner and Alan Bremner. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 54 years Sherbourne (Sherby) Everett McGrath, his parents, his sister Judy (McGrath) Van Hecke and brother-in-law (David Van Hecke), and brother John of Bettendorf, IA.