Obituary

James Alfred “Jim” Fleming, 73, passed away on Monday (Nov. 8, 2010) at Asbury Park in Newton.

He was born on Sept. 1, 1937, in Coldwater to Floyd R. and Clara Marie (Doran) Fleming. He married Johnita Pepperd on Sept. 8, 1957, in Coldwater. They later divorced. He worked as a mechanic and later a custodian for USD 300 in Coldwater. Nearly a lifetime resident of Coldwater, he moved to Newton in 2004. He was a graduate of Coldwater High School, class of 1955.

He served in the U.S. Navy from August 1955 to June 1958 as an air controlman second class. He was a member of First Christian Church, Masonic Lodge No. 295, Order of the Eastern Star No. 224, serving as a past worthy patron in 1968, all in Coldwater. He worked at Fleming Motors as a mechanic, then at CMS and Parson’s Auto Electric and finally as a school custodian, all in Coldwater. He retired in 2000.

He is survived by his sons, Scott Allen Fleming of Moran and Sid Arlin (Sarah) Fleming of Newton; one daughter, Shelley Ann (Arlin) Wadel of Greensburg; three brothers, Floyd (Eloise) Fleming of Wellsville, Frank Raymond Fleming of Macon, Ga., and James E. (Elsie) Fleming of Montgomery, Ala.; one sister, Patricia Whelpley of Oklahoma City, Okla.; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Visitation will be from 1 to 7 p.m. Friday at Hatfield-Prusa Funeral Home in Coldwater. A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Nov. 20 at Hatfield-Prusa Funeral Home in Coldwater. Pastor Eric Massanari will officiate. Burial will be in the Crown Hill Cemetery in Coldwater. Memorials can be made to the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society or Parkinson’s Foundation of the Heartland, all in care of the funeral home.