James Bryant
Piasa |
James (Jim) Lowell Bryant, 85, passed peacefully in his sleep at home early Sunday morning, October 6, 2024.
Jim was born in Piasa. IL in 1939 to William Amos and Mary (Hayes) Bryant. Jim was the third of a total of 11 children. They moved frequently, eventually settling in Kansas where Jim attended high school in Colby, KS. He moved back to Illinois in 1957, where he met Janet Antrobus at church. They were married 3 months after meeting, on February 14, 1958. He said they picked the date so he would never forget their anniversary. And in the 65 years they were married, he never did.
They welcomed 4 children into the world, Jeannie Bryant of Wood River; Christie Kamp (Tom) of Wood River, James Bryant (Mickey) of Dora, MO ; and Judy Bryant of Bethalto, IL. He had 10 grandchildren, 13 great grandchildren and 1 great, great grandchild. He loved and was proud of them all.
Jim was working at Alton Steel when he completed his GED in the early 1960's. He was among the first people to take advantage of that program. His scores were so high, that he won a 4 year teaching scholarship to the new SIU campus st Alton. In one of the few regrets of his life, he was unable to take advantage of the scholarship. In those days, the factories did not allow flexible work schedules and with a growing family to care for, college did not seem possible. He worked at Wood River Glass for 10 years, but was self-employed most of his life. He opened Discount Produce Markets in the 1970s and then did home improvements most of the rest of his life until he retired in 2017.
He was generous to people in need, loved decorating the house for Christmas, and Halloween, and enjoyed sitting on the front porch talking to neighbors. He remained active until complications from bypass surgery in 2021 and advancing COPD restricted his activities, but he never lost his love for his family, Cardinal baseball, Kansas City Chiefs, or a ride up the Great River Road.
He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Janet; his four kids and all of the grandchildren. He felt very blessed that all of his kids were healthy. He was survived by a half sister. Sandy (Kinser) Buttry, of Lebanon and half brother Claude Kinser, of Ozark, MO, as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his father Amos;,mother, Mary; stepfather, Wayne;, brothers Bill, Darrell, Ed, Howard, Dwight and sisters Joanne, Phyllis, and Cathy.
He was loved and will be fiercely missed. No services are planned per his request, but his family is having a private memorial celebrating his life. The family appreciates prayers and condolences.
Elias, Kallal & Schaaf Funeral Home