James Lambert, 87, of Mancelona, died peacefully, Tue, Oct 20, at Munson Medical Center in Traverse City.
Jim was born Mar 23, 1922, at the home of his parents, Thomas and Rose (Courtade) Lambert. He gained a very good education in a one room school house, giving him the skills and interests he has added to throughout his life.
He served his country in WWII as a Sergeant in the US Army Air Force unit 2538ph, based in Randolph, TX. His service was from Jan 23, 1942 until Dec 15, 1945 as an auto equipment operator.
For his service, he received the following medals: Good Conduct, American Campaign, WWII Victory, and the Honorable Service lapel button for WWII.
During this time, he married Agnes Marie Kelly on Jun 21, 1948. They settled on a farm near Rapid City, where he resided for 42 years.
Jim exemplified hard work and perseverance in hard times. He was always seeking to provide for his family and was always willing to go out of his way to help a neighbor.
He worked on construction crews for many years, most of the time as a heavy equipment operator.
Jim served on the Rapid City School Board for several years, and also served as a scout leader for the Boy Scouts of America.
He was an amateur architect and inventor. Jim could keep machinery and vehicles going when there were very few resources available. He could design parts and/or sketch out the floor plan for a building addition. The blackboard in the family home often held a working model in progress.
In later years, Jim enjoyed traveling with his children, cutting wood, and driving his 1955 Chevy 3/4 ton truck. He also enjoyed his 1954 John Deere tractor that he and his children and restored.
Jim liked seeing and spending time with his grandchildren. His hobbies were reading, watching re runs of MASH, Little House on the Prairie and baseball.
He resided at Meadow Brook - Long Term Care, in Bellaire, MI at the time of death. He was a member of the Antrim Church of Christ.
Jim is survived by his sons: Tom (Brenda) of Mancelona and Gary (Marcia) of Broken Arrow, OK; his daughter, Katie Lambert (Craig) Krueger of Napoleon, MO; and his grandchildren, Tom (Jodi) Lambert, Lisa (Rory) Windish, Gary (Fayrene) Lambert, John Lambert, Suzanne (Jonathan) Lashley, Amy Krueger, and Jennifer (Nate) Wynn.
He is additionally survived by 10 great grand children; Isaac, Sarah, Rachel, Ricki, Daniel, Katrina Matthew, Timothy, Rose, and Andrew - as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
Jim was preceded in death by his wife, Agnes (Kelly) Lambert; his parents, Thomas J and Rose (Courtade) Lambert; his siters, Mary Yorks and Louise Lambert; and his brothers, Bob, Don, and Dick.
Funeral services were held Fri, Oct 23, at the Antrim Church of Christ. Pastor Mark McCool officiated.
Interment was in Coldsprings Township Cemetery.
Arrangements have been handled by the Mancelona Chapel of Mortensen Funeral Homes.
