James Galen Sjoberg

It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, and great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat"...Teddy Roosevelt

James Galen Sjoberg died June 22nd, 2025 moments after a fun family brunch with his wife and son in Plano, Texas.

Jim Sjoberg was born December 18,1938 in McPherson, Kansas to Carl and Dorothy Sjoberg. The family, including sister Noel and brother Gerry, moved to Blackwell, Oklahoma early in Jim's life where his journey really began. Jim met the love of his life Carol Kay Turvey on a Blackwell tennis court when he was 15 and she was 13. Marriage followed 4 years later, and their son Jeff was born in 1959 while Jim was attending the University of Oklahoma. With an industrial management engineering background, opportunity brought his young family to Houston in 1967 where Jim and Carol lived until 1991. That year, new horizons brought Jim and Carol to the Dallas area where Jim grew his 2nd start-up business until his retirement in 2018. Jim's curiosity and interests were numerous and varied, including the oil business, investing in stocks, OU football, playing tennis, and his biggest passion with Carol in breeding and showing Japanese Akita dogs. Their reputation throughout the country in the Akita world was impeccable due to their love and respect for that breed.

Jim created two businesses in his life, Houston Oil Tools and SjoBrand, Inc. and built two dream homes, one in the Houston area and one in the beautiful countryside spread they owned in Corsicana. Jim loved his 27 acre "dog ranch" , his dog community and was very active in the local community center and in Emhouse Methodist Church. In his late 70s, Jim provided and distributed backpacks filled with food and goodies with his church for underprivileged children and knocked on doors in Navarro county to facilitate voter registration. Calling Jim purposeful and significant is like calling the ocean wet... an absurd understatement.

When Jim and Carol moved to Sunrise Senior Living in 2022 they seamlessly blended into a new community. Poker, bingo and happy hour good times became a fun part of his life for the remainder of his days. Jim Sjoberg positively affected hundreds of lives in 86 1/2 years and will be missed beyond words.

Jim is preceded in death by his mother and father, Dorothy and Carl Sjoberg, and his sister Noel Gossett and brother Gerry Sjoberg. Jim is survived by his wife of 67 years Carol Sjoberg of Plano, Texas, his son Jeff Sjoberg of Dallas and numerous nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to St. Jude's or your local pet adoption facility.

Our memorial to Jim will take place on August 1st, 2025 at 11am at Ted Dickey Funeral Home 2128 18th Street Plano, Tx. Carol and Jeff invite you to join us in honoring a great man on that date at that time.