James Bud Fisher

On Sunday, July 13, 2025, our wonderful, generous, and loving husband, father, grandfather, uncle, and friend left us to embark on his next journey. Born on August 10, 1933, he was the youngest of the five children of Arthur Harrison Fisher and Mabel Ellis Fisher. Legally blind since birth, he led a remarkable and exemplary life. He was educated in the programs for the visually impaired in Los Angeles Unified School District, graduating from John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in 1951. He graduated from Los Angeles City College, California State University Los Angeles, and earned a graduate degree in Special Education from California State University San Francisco all without ever being able to read a textbook or take class notes on his own before the days of small tape recorders and audio books. He taught blind and visually impaired K-6 students for 37 years, 34 of those at Wolters Elementary School in Fresno. His success as a teacher and as a husband and father was an example to his students, as well as encouragement to their parents. He formed close relationships with many students over the years, several of whom he kept in touch with until the time of his death. He was honored as teacher of the year in 1993 by the Fresno Education Foundation.

Jim married fellow educator Joyce Lee Jones on August 13, 1961. In 1965 they were joined by son Scot, followed by daughter Erica in 1966. Theirs was a remarkably loving and harmonious marriage and they were an example and inspiration to all who knew them.

Jim loved travel, folk music concerts, and baseball, particularly the San Francisco Giants. He could talk to anyone with equal interest and enjoyment and he made it his mission to connect in some way with everyone he met. In retirement, he became a Pop par excellence to Cynda, Zack, Oliver, and Charlotte - always ready to play pretend, the teller of the famous Squeaky the Mouse tales, and often the only one who could get the baby to nap! Jim was a truly singular human being. He was unfailingly thoughtful, kind, generous, fun, upbeat, brilliant, interesting, super friendly, and hilarious. He was beloved by family, friends, colleagues, and students. He was a flawless husband, father, grandfather, and uncle and an excellent teacher. He was always ready for some fun, always there to listen and help. He will be sorely missed and remembered with so much love and respect and gratitude.

Jim is survived by his daughter, Erica; son Scot and his wife Gina; grandchildren Cynda and Jacob Marrufo, Zackary Fisher, Oliver Johnson and his partner Khepri Urrea, and Charlotte Johnson; great granddaughters Makenna and Karsyn Marrufo; former daughter in law Kristi Householder Vieyra and her husband Gil; sister in law and brother in law Karen and Douglas Raybeck; nieces and nephews Jerry and Judy Hickey, Kathleen and Timothy Brower, Peggy Hickey, Ned Harris, Megan Harris and her husband Simon Dedman, Jennifer Fickenscher and her husband David, and Alethea Raybeck, as well as many other relatives, friends, and colleagues.

Memorial contributions may be made to Fresno Community Food Bank or Tree Fresno.