Friday, May 26, 2023
From many members of my family - our hearts are sad at the loss of our friend Jim. I met him in 1st grade, we walked to & from school together with our brothers, lived across the street for 10 years, and became close friends. Jim went on to college & the Navy, I moved away. We reconnected in 2020 for an amazing 3 years of weekly visits full of laughter, teasing, and ice cream, & going down memory lane with Festus at my feet. Road trips to the lake for the swans, down back roads for fall color or snow-covered evergreens. An African proverb says, "When an elder dies, a library is lost". Jim was the best historian of this area, and the early railroads. We spent months together uncovering early Plummer history for a book I wrote with Mike; Jim added 20 pages of his drawings. He was an amazing artist & featured in an exhibit at Plummer's library last year. Jim loved to tease. He razzed me for being the only girl to beat him in arm-wrestling, or hit a longer home run. My teasing of him was always met with one raised eyebrow & "Behave yourself!" He offered useful advice on life in the golden years - heavy on common sense, scarce on sympathy, along with great bear hugs when needed.Those always ended with a grin and "Don't get used to this". Jim helped me plant dozens of tulips and peonies from his garden to my new home. My family and I will smile at the blossoms every spring, and remember him well. Farewell, "Sunshine".
From Pat Mitchell - "Jim brought rays of sunshine into the lives of a great many people, including mine. I was really looking forward to our basketball rematch this summer and sharing sports stories circa 1960's in North Idaho".
From Joe Mitchell - "I'm very sorry. Jim was a good and interesting man, and a talented artist. Kim and I will miss walking the Rails to Trails with him during our Plummer visits".
From Mike Mitchell - "He was one of the most fun, and interesting, guys I've ever run across."
From Tim Hensley - "Jim was the most loveable guy I ever knew. I'll never forget him."
