James defied the odds for 57 years living with a rare heart condition. He passed peacefully at St. Peter’s Palliative Care unit with his family by his side. James will be dearly missed and lovingly remembered by his wife Joan, daughters Bonnie (and son in law Moe Nayef) and Christie (and son in law Matt Kling) grandson Wally, father Bill, siblings Dave, Mike and Rhonda as well as a large extended family, church family and many friends.
Born and raised in Ottawa Ontario, James attended Bible College in Kitchener and spent a portion of his career managing a Christian Book and Gift store in Hamilton. He later pursued a Master’s Degree in Theology at McMaster Divinity College. He put his personal values of care, peace, compassion and justice into practice by holding an Executive Director role in Restorative Justice. Due to deteriorating health, James retired in 2018 but continued to fulfill his values by writing two fictional novels inspired by his time working in the inner city.
James was an involved member of Mount Hamilton Baptist Church for 23 years, leading Bible studies, and assisting in incorporation, chairing the board and serving on the Pumpkin patch board. A key player in shaping the church. He enjoyed reading, painting, writing, helping, spending time in nature and genuinely loved all people. Professional ‘Dad joke’ generator, master camp fire starter, pro boat docker and wealth of knowledge and wisdom, James saw beauty and wonder in all and found joy in simple things.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made in James’s name to the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre https://uhnfoundation.ca/programs/heart/ or Mount Hamilton Baptist Church https://www.mhbc.ca.
Visitation will be held on Thursday February 2nd from 7:00-9:00pm and on Friday February 3rd from 3:00-5:00pm. The funeral service will be held at 2:00pm on Saturday February 4th with light refreshments to follow. Both the visitation and funeral will be held at at Mount Hamilton Baptist Church, 626 Upper Wentworth Street, Hamilton Ontario. James was anything but ordinary so come just as you are, in anything but black.
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