CEDAR CREEK – S.C. Air National Guard Brigadier General James H. Tuten (Ret.), a longtime Cedar Creek resident and former Richland County Council member representing Blythewood, was buried with full military honors on Monday.
Tuten, 89, died on June 12 following ill health. At the time of his retirement in 1992, Tuten was serving as Deputy Adjutant General, concluding 43 years of military service. He served two terms as president of the National Guard Association of S.C. and one term as a member of the Executive Council of the National Guard Association of the U. S.
He was the recipient of numerous awards and decorations, among them the United States Air Force Distinguished Service Medal as well as the South Carolina Distinguished Medal. He also received the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian award.
Tuten was a founding member of Cedar Creek Baptist Church, where he served several terms as a deacon and taught Sunday School for many years. In April 2013, Cedar Creek Baptist Church conferred upon him the office of Deacon Emeritus.
Following his funeral service Monday morning at Cedar Creek Baptist Church, Tuten was interred in the historic Cedar Creek Methodist Church cemetery.
