James Edwin Mountain

James E. Mountain, Sr., 92, died November 24 peacefully at his home in South Portland with his loving wife of 70 years, Marilyn Hardy Mountain, by his side. Together they raised five children who will forever miss him.

James was born in Derby Connecticut on May 26, 1928, to Robert Fulton Mountain, Jr. and Dorothy Hibbard Mountain. They moved to Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in 1938. His family also included five sisters: Margaret Morgan, Beverly Chase Peacock, Roberta Thresher, Marilyn Garneau, and Evelyn Theresa Garneau; and two brothers: Fulton Thomas Mountain and Joseph Francis Mountain.

James lived and worked at the Mt. Washington Hotel where as a young boy, he retrieved golf balls from the river for resale until he was old enough to caddy for hotel guests who included Babe Ruth, and to assist his father with hotel maintenance. He graduated from Twin Mountain High School in 1945 as a class of one.

James joined the army in 1945, and attended the Army Specialized Training Reserve Program at the University of Massachusetts. He was sent to basic training in Alabama, and assigned to an engineering company in Korea as part of the army occupation after WWII. He was honorably discharged as a WWII veteran in 1947, and returned to Bretton Woods where he worked for the State of NH Highway Department until he married in the fall of 1950.

James married Marilyn Jean Hardy of Lancaster NH, at All Saints Church in Lancaster NH on November 11, 1950. The couple moved to St. Augustine FL for the winter where James worked in the power plant of the Ponce de Leon Hotel. When they returned, James worked at the power plant at the Mt. Washington Hotel for the summer. In the fall of 1951, they moved to Kittery ME where he worked for C. H. Sprague in Portsmouth driving tractor trailer tanker trucks owned by Merrill Transport and leased to Sprague. In 1960, Paul Merrill formed Merrill Rental Service in South Portland ME to lease trucks to Hannaford Brothers Foods, and asked James to be its manager. They moved to South Portland and he managed Merrill Rental until it closed in 1972, then moved to Merrill Transport as Terminal Manager, then Safety Director in 1973 where he stayed until his retirement in 1991.

James was a true sportsman and loved hunting in New Hampshire with family and friends. He remembered the caribou hunt in Nouveau Quebec with his sons as the hunting adventure of a lifetime. As a decorated Lifetime Master competitive pistol shooter, he was the 1047th civilian to earn the Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge from the Department of the Army since it originated in 1891, and the third in the state of Maine. He was a member and past president of Spurwink Rod & Gun, Scarborough Fish & Game, and Scarborough Rod & Gun clubs. James enjoyed photography, the great game of golf, polka music and his souped-up AMC Gremlin. He was passionate, competitive and excelled at his hobbies which often included making his own equipment, guns, ammo, and golf clubs. Mountain’s Ruff, probably the first virtual golf game, was created in the attic by trimming the rafters so the 6’2” man could take a full swing, and hit a golf ball into a net in front of a screen. Slide carousels included pictures from each tee, fairway and green of several local golf courses which were projected onto the screen. Mountain’s Ruff helped to pass the long Maine winters, and to maintain his golf skills. James served as an altar boy as a young boy, and was a dedicated Lector and Eucharistic Minister at Holy Cross Church for 18 years. He was also polite, kind and well spoken.

James is predeceased by his parents, sisters: Margaret, Beverly, and Evelyn, and brother: Fulton. James is survived by his beloved wife, Marilyn, as well as, sons: James Jr. of Saco, and Shawn and his wife Aimee of Standish, and daughters: Marie Clements and her husband Timothy of Buxton, Annette Berube and her husband Mitchel of Gorham, and Rosalie McMullen and her husband Michael of Scarborough. Nine grandchildren include Jeani Brugmann and her husband Adam of Tallmadge OH, Veronica Mountain and her partner Chris Caudill of Kent, OH, Olivia Mountain of Aaron OH, Amanda Blunda and her husband Samuel of Buxton, Dora Clements of Buxton, Donna Schlieper and her partner Joseph Carroll of Nashua, NH, Brent Berube and his partner Kasey Flood of Saco, Dan McMullen and his wife Aryn of Buxton, and Marcus Mountain of Standish. Ten great grandchildren include Matthew and Nathan Brugmann, Qianna, Debra, and Travis Carlock of Ohio, Beckett and Hughett Blunda of Buxton, Ana Berube and Hunter Dube of Saco, and Cora McMullen of Buxton.

The family is grateful for the support of Northern Lights Hospice that helped to keep James in his home of 60+ years through his final days; and for all of the family and friends who have sent their condolences. A private burial will be at a later date.