James leaves behind his parents, Gerald and Patricia (Reynolds) Wildman, brothers Edward (Johna) Wildman and Jonathan (Jennifer) Wildman, wife Candace Reuter, daughter Erika Wildman (Tim), several nieces and nephews and his kind-hearted pup, Miley Jacs.
Jim created excitement wherever he went with his larger-than-life presence. When in Jim’s company one was often granted the benefit of his opinion whether you thought you needed it or not. He thoroughly enjoyed being outdoors and had a passion for fishing. Jim’s excitement for being on the water and casting his line combined with an inability to sit still made for many treasures to be deposited in several area waterways including cell phones, tackle boxes, coolers and more often than not his fishing companions. He loved learning new trivia facts, generally so he could outsmart you later with his new-found knowledge.
He often stopped to help someone he did not know. Time and time again he was late coming home as he had pulled over to help someone fix their mailbox that had “fallen over” (which he jokingly blamed his Uncle Kenny or other friends in the Public Works Department for not knowing how to snow plow.) He loved taking cars apart with the intention of putting them together again. Jim’s ability to understand the mechanics of how everything worked gave him the extraordinary ability to bring any broken equipment back to life. He could weld, bend, hammer, nail, grease, cut, replace, fabricate or rebuild anything.
He will be greatly missed as a community activist, especially by the Monroe Police Department, anyone parked in a fire lane blocking the entrance to a local business, and motorists who did not know how to use their turn signals properly.
Jim had a big heart and tight circle of family and friends. He would share his heart, soul and the shirt off his back generously with anyone fortunate enough to be part of that circle – but of course, he would take immense pleasure in giving you a hard time about it afterwards. Most of all, he loved those who loved him back.
You may pay your respects to Jim and his family, on Thursday, February 9, 2023 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Spadaccino and Leo P. Gallagher & Son Community Funeral Home, Monroe, Connecticut.
In lieu flowers contributions may be made in Jim’s name to the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center.
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