Jacksonville philanthropist Arthur Chester Skinner Jr. remembered for kindness, generosity

Widely respected Jacksonville philanthropist Arthur Chester Skinner Jr., known for his kindness, generosity, and as a benefactor of The Bolles School, passed away Friday  at age 98.

Mr. Skinner died suddenly from natural causes peacefully in his sleep, his eldest son, A. Chester "Chip" Skinner III said Sunday. 

"It's always difficult, but we consider it a blessing that he was able to pass so peacefully. He was very alert and his mind was sharp right up to the end," Skinner said of his dad.

Hardage-Giddens Oaklawn Chapel in Jacksonville is handling the funeral arrangements, which haven't been finalized.

Skinner said the COVID-19 pandemic is complicating the situation.

"We're going to probably have a graveside service with the immediate family here shortly," Skinner said. It's unknown when they might be able to have a large gathering to celebrate his father's life because of the pandemic, he said,

Born Feb. 20, 1922, Mr. Skinner was the patriarch of one of Jacksonville's oldest families. Their family has been here for about 120 years.

Genuinely humble about his own success, he believed in working hard, giving back to the community, and ensuring students had the opportunities for a good education, family and friends said Sunday. 

He believed in treating people, especially those working for a living, with respect, and he wasn't above getting his hands dirty doing manual labor, they said.  

"He was just a regular down to earth guy," said Mike Barrett, a former Bolles football coach who has known Skinner for about 46 years.

Mr. Skinner had excelled academically and as a student-athlete at Bolles and then Georgia Tech, and later as a mechanical engineer and businessman. But he never forgot his roots.

He was one of the Bolles School's biggest benefactors as well as provided land aiding the growth of the University of North Florida as well as Jacksonville itself.

"He didn't just give the money. He was in there with his sleeves rolled up doing manual labor," Skinner said. "People remember him out there cutting the grass at Bolles on a tractor. When he got passionate about something. He wanted it done well and wasn't afraid to do the work himself."

Mr. Skinner made time for people, Barrett said.

"He was always a good mentor to everybody. He helped the kids. The students all benefitted from his philanthropy and helping the school. "He was a good friend to everybody involved at the school," said Barrett, who last saw Mr. Skinner about a week ago.

Barrett said Mr. Skinner would be the first to someone in need assistance with a project or who had fallen on hard times.

"He was always building and fixing and working. … When we'd first come to school, you'd see him out there before games picking up trash around the field, making sure everything looked good with military spiff. He'd do the work himself," Barrett said.

Mr. Skinner grew up in rural Jacksonville. His father, A. Chester Skinner Sr., was a farmer and in the real estate business. 

A mechanical engineer by education and profession, Mr. Skinner Jr. and his late brother, Charles Brightman Skinner, owned and operated Meadowbrook Farms dairy on Jacksonville's Southside.

"Dad had a great appreciation for people who worked for a living … all people whether they were in the service industry like waitresses, plumbers, or engineers," said his son, noting many of the people his dad was closest to were working folks. They included people who owned or worked at a restaurant he frequented all the time.

Mr. Skinner practiced substantial generosity quietly and without drawing attention to himself.

"My brothers, sister and I don't know a fraction of what he did to help people," Chip Skinner said. Mr. Skinner's generosity ranged from major donations aiding the expansion of UNF to providing rights-of-way for the extension of Southside and J. Turner Butler boulevards and Gate Parkway.

Parcels of Skinner family land are at the foundation of St. Johns Town Center as well as nearby commercial developments.

"He was very devoted to the city … and wanted the community to do well," Chip Skinner said.

Skinner said he, his two brothers and their sister could not have had a better father.

"He was very supportive of anything that we did. He was very encouraging but not overbearing … It was just unconditional love," Skinner said of his father.

Mr. Skinner was a graduate of both Bolles and Georgia Tech. He was the valedictorian of the Bolles Class of 1940. Later, he became a member of the Georgia Tech Engineering Hall of Fame and was valedictorian of his Georgia Tech engineering class. He also played football for Georgia Tech. A lineman, Mr. Skinner played in the 1943 Cotton Bowl game against Texas, longtime friends said.

Bolles and its students were his pride and joy, his son said.

"He just loved that place and what it did for him when he was a student there, and what it did for us when we had an opportunity to attend. That was a big part of his life," Skinner said of his dad.

Mr. Skinner is survived by his wife, Connie, three sons and a daughter, 15 grandchildren, and 26 great-grandchildren. Among them are past Bolles graduates and current students.

Mark Sieron, an attorney and longtime track and field coach at Bolles, described Mr. Skinner as "kind-hearted and his generosity was beyond the pale."

"He was the ultimate family man," Sieron said. "I have had the privilege of witnessing him over the years as he was always there to support, encourage, and cheer on his grandchildren, who have all inherited his kindness and compassion. Through his large family, Mr. Skinner leaves a tremendous legacy to our entire community.”

Skinner said his dad was a very humble man but he wanted things to be done well. 

"If you look at anything that he did and the way that he raised us, his thought process was 'anything that was worth doing, was worth doing well,' from fixing a leaking plumbing pipe to building a football stadium at The Bolles School, he wanted it to be first class," Skinner said.