Jim was born on July 11, 1945, in Mexico, Mo., to Richard and Maxine Jones, both of whom preceded him in death. He graduated in 1963, as a Hickman High School Kewpie. Jim married Trish Borgman in 1964.
After attempting several colleges, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1966. After his son was born in 1970, he received an honorable discharge and went back to college, where he earned his bachelor's degree in 1972.
In 1972, Jim started work as a management trainee for State Farm Insurance in Columbia, before moving to Bloomington. He then became an agent for a short time, before settling in with a 3rd party agency in Wichita, Kan. After 10 years, Jim accepted a position with Illinois Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Peoria, Ill., where he served for 25 years, retiring in 2009 as assistant vice president. It was at Illinois Mutual that Jim met and later married Diane Kehl on Oct. 1, 1988.
Jim is survived by his wife of 25 years, Diane; his children, Philip (Angela) and Angela (Erik), both of Lees Summit, Mo., and Jessica and Jennifer, both of Mapleton, Ill. He is also survived by his grandsons, Noah, Ian and Emery; and one granddaughter on the way. Jim is survived by his sister, Connie (Ron) Anderson of Beaverton, Ore.
Jim was a very active person who enjoyed all sports, particularly golf and bowling, and was a longtime Cubs fan. He felt that being a Cubs fan meant that you exude a tremendous amount of patience and a great sense of humor.
"When someone would ask me how I was feeling, I would usually say, 'Well, I feel a lot more like I do now than I did when I got here.' If that brought a confused look to their face, he would continue with, 'now, wait, I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I don't think you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.' Those were my Dad's favorite lines right up to his passing in 2010, at the age of 93. His persistent refusal to give up on his positive attitude and humor meant so much to me. Over the past year and a half, I learned to cope and deal with my own illness through the power of prayer, the power of family and friends, and, yes the power of maintaining a positive attitude and sense of humor. Easy? Of course not. But it helped me tremendously, right up to the end. Would I have done things differently in my life if I had known this was coming? Sure, we all have some regrets, but get over it. I elected to dwell on the positives and so many things that I did right. And NOBODY can say that I ever lost my sense of humor, which in my opinion, is so important to the human spirit. Stay positive, stay close to family and friends, keep that sense of humor, or at least get one, and enjoy the day. . . everyday. May the road rise to meet you; may the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face; and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand."
SYOTOS services will be held on Friday, Oct. 25, 2013, at 10 a.m. at Davison-Fulton Woodland Chapel in Peoria. Visitation will be held on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2013, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial will be at Parkview Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Illinois Cancer Care Research or OSF Hospice.
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.18