Louis James Lyell, age 97, passed away peacefully at his home on March 18, 2023 surrounded by his family. Called "Woo" by his grandchildren, he was considered a renaissance man and a gentle giant by those who knew him. He was born on September 15, 1925 at his family home on Bellevue Place in Jackson, and he liked to tell people the temperature that day was 104 degrees. He was the third son of Clarena Bailey Hallam Lyell and Judge Gordon Garland Lyell. He attended Davis School and graduated from Central High School in 1942. He went on to the University of Mississippi and became a Delta Psi just like his father and was preparing for law school when World War II interrupted his schooling. He went to OCS and was sent to Europe in World War II's closing days. After his service, he returned to Ole Miss to finish his undergraduate education and graduate from law school.

After graduation he joined his father and brother, Garland Lyell, Jr. at the Lyell and Lyell law firm. Realizing law was not for him, he went to Germany where he learned German and worked in a bank. This is where his adventure and love for travel was born. He was at Potsdamer Platz where he witnessed the famous uprising on June 17, 1953. The next day the sector boundaries had been cordoned off. His interest in world historical events continued the rest of his life. He traveled to Salzburg connecting with dozens of Europeans who would become lifelong friends. He returned to the United States and worked for the SBA where he was fired for being excessively honest, turning in his corrupt boss for impropriety. As a whistle blower, he did not want to work for the government anymore, so, he moved to Los Angeles for two years to work for his cousin as a steel broker. His best friends in LA were in the insurance business, so, he moved back to Jackson to pursue a career in insurance sales at Lincoln National Life. Over the years, he won many awards for his salesmanship and also became a CLU and CHFC.

In 1963, he met his future wife Tippy née Alison Reimers, and they married in 1964 and daughters Lorna Margaret and Louise Hallam were born in 1965 and 1966 respectively. He believed in volunteerism in his community and was involved in Kiwanis Club, Ballet Guild, Jackson Symphony, Opera Guild, the Vestry at St. Andrew's Cathedral, St. Andrew's School Foundation, and fundraising for Rhodes College. He also served as the first chairman of the Eudora Welty Foundation and the first President of the Kidney Foundation. He was a member of the Ambassador Club and a charter member of River Hills Club. His lifetime interests included amateur "ham" radio, astronomy, bee-keeping, seismology, radio-controlled airplanes, microscopy, and spending time reading in his extensive library. He liked to keep fit and enjoyed swimming, biking, and tennis. In his retirement, he was involved with the English-Speaking Union and the University Press of Mississippi which led to travelling the globe and meeting interesting people.

He had a very curious mind, and he utilized scholarship to engage with and stimulate others as shown by the observatory he donated to St. Andrew's School in 1984 named for his brother Frank Lyell, who served as his intellectual mentor, and his friend, NASA scientist Fridtjof Speer. The observatory became the symbol of St. Andrew's School's pursuit of academic excellence. He was a founding member of St. Stephen's Anglican Church in 1986, and the parish hall there is named in his honor. He was an early Republican in Mississippi and was always conservative and traditional in his political perspective.

He is predeceased by his parents; his brothers Frank Hallam Lyell and Gordon Garland Lyell, Jr.; and his nephew Michael Hallam Lyell. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Alison "Tippy" Reimers Lyell; daughters Lorna Margaret Lyell Chain (Tom), and Louise Hallam Lyell Lampton (Luke); nephews Gordon Garland Lyell, III (Kathy), Henry Michael Lyell (Joanne); Grandchildren Crawford Denkmann Lampton, Alison Ross Chain, Garland Dudley Lampton, and John Lyell Chain; Godchildren Frederick Reimers, Robert Langford, Carter Watters, and Sarah Dabney Gillespie.

Pallbearers are Dr. Luke Lampton, Tom Chain, Crawford Lampton, Garland Lampton, John Chain, and Robert Langford. Honorary pallbearers are Garland Lyell, Henry Lyell, Fred Reimers, John Reimers, Frederick Reimers, Robert Haltom, Mack Cole, Scott Woods, Auburn Lambeth, Walker Watters, Carter Watters, and Joe McNamee.

The family wishes to thank caregivers Dianne Jones, Kenny Jones, Iesia Harden, Angela Davis, and Laquita Davis. In lieu of flowers memorials can be made St. Stephen's Anglican Church, St. Andrew's Observatory Endowment Fund or French Camp Academy.

Visitation will be at Wright and Ferguson Funeral Home in Flowood on Wednesday March 22 from 5 pm to 7 pm and will continue at St. Stephen's Anglican Church in Flowood on Thursday March 23 at 10 am. A memorial service will be held at St. Stephen's Anglican Church conducted by Fr. Nevada DeLapp on Thursday March 23 at 10:30 am, with graveside services and burial following at Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson.