01/05/2026
Sergeant Major James Ermine Huger, Sr. (January 4, 1915 - October 14, 2016) was born in Tampa. He earned his high school diploma and an AA at Bethune-Cookman College. He attended West Virginia State College where he received his BS. He earned his MS from the University of Michigan. He served as the business manager of the school for more than 40 years.
He was drafted into the Marine Corps becoming one of the first African American Marines. He served as a Montford Point Marine and trained at the Montford Point facility at Camp Lejeune. He was promoted until he reached the highest rank as a non-commissioned officer: Sergeant Major.
Mrs. Bethune asked him to run the United Negro College Fund in DC. He was a member of the Stewart Memorial United Methodist Church and served as Charge Lay Leader. He was appointed to the Urban Renewal Advisory Board for the City of Daytona Beach. He became the city’s first African American elected official when he was elected city commissioner. He was the first African American to serve on the Volusia County Council and served as chairman. He served as the city’s community development director.
He served as a Trustee Emeritus on the Bethune-Cookman University Board of Associate Trustees, an Associate Trustee of Halifax Health, President of the Board of the Stewart Marchman Center, Board Member of The R**e Crisis Center, and Board Member of Florida Health Care. Huger participated in numerous other organizations including the Daytona Beach International Speedway Checkered Flag Committee, The Association for Re****ed Citizens, The Division of Blind Services, The Florida League of Cities, NAACP, Governor’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee, HOPE House, the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, The Elks, the American Teachers’ Association, Daytona Beach Chamber of Commerce, and the Florida Committee of 100. He was the executive director for Alpha Phi Alpha. He is credited with integrating Daytona Beach’s municipal golf course and contributed to The Halifax Associates Membership Handbook and the Disaster Preparedness Guidebook for Community Development Professionals.