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Funeral: 2 p.m. Saturday, April 9, 2016, at Frank & Bright Funeral Home
Visitation: 5-7 p.m. Friday and 12:30 - 2 p.m. Saturday at Frank & Bright Funeral Home
James Eldon Etchison, age 67, of Houston, Texas, an Illinois native of Flora and former resident of Troy, passed away as the Lord’s Prayer was softly spoken by those in his presence on Friday evening at the home of his daughter in St. Jacob.
Jim was born April 5, 1948, in Effingham, the son of Lindsey D. and Margaret “Margo” (Regan) Etchison.
Attending St. Stephen’s Catholic School during his youth, and then Flora High School where he went out for basketball, track and football, Jim excelled as quarterback during a memorable 10-0 season. After attending the University of Illinois, he earned his MBA at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. A career spanning over 20 years with Frigidaire culminated in a post as Vice President of Marketing and Director of National Accounts, and he later joined Conn’s Appliance as Head Buyer. Jim will be remembered for following his adventurous spirit in traveling throughout the world, and developing new interests and passions such as cycling, the art behind brewing a perfect cup of coffee, coin collecting, and most recently, metal detecting. He was an avid reader and a writer of poetry. While following his enjoyment in watching college basketball, he shared a trip with his father in the late 1980’s to the NCAA Final 4, and this spearheaded 23 successive annual outings during March Madness. A faith-inspired wish to give back to others led to volunteering his time, including through the Adorers of the Blood of Christ at the Ruma Convent. Jim was a caring dad, and he discovered extraordinary joy when his grandsons became part of his life.
He is survived by his children: Carrie Etchison of St. Jacob, Jennifer Lee Etchison of Houston, TX, and James L. Etchison of Glen Carbon; 2 grandsons: Jacob Etchison and Ryan Smith; siblings: Greg (Karen) Etchison of Montgomery, TX, Jeff (Linda) Etchison of Flora, Joe (Myrna) Etchison of Flora, Jack Etchison of Owensboro, KY, and Mona (Elizabeth) Etchison of La Grange Park; along with several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A funeral service for Jim Etchison will be 2 p.m. Saturday, April 9, 2016, at Frank & Bright Funeral Home in Flora. Visitation will be 5-7 p.m. Friday and 12:30-2 p.m. on Saturday at the funeral home. Memorial donations may be given for the benefit of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ (ASC Retirement Fund) and will be accepted at the funeral home. Please visit www.frankandbright.com to share a memory or condolence with the family.
Jul 21, 1931 - Nov 18, 2024
Nov 15, 1940 - Nov 9, 2024
Sep 5, 1961 - Oct 31, 2024
Nov 14, 1941 - Oct 30, 2024
Nov 28, 1936 - Oct 29, 2024
Greg and Family: We are very sorry to hear of Jim's passing. Our hearts hurt for you. Please know y'all are in our thoughts and prayers. God bless.
I remember Jim Well. My condolences and prayers go out to the families, friends and loved ones of the Etchison family.
I am so sorry to hear of Jim' s passing. My thoughts and prayers to all of his family. May he rest in peace.
I am saddened by the death of my nephew, Jim Etchison. He and my two sons, John and Don Etchison were first cousins, growing up with lots of togetherness. My thoughts and prayers are with all of the family, relatives and friends as we morn the death of Jim. Love to all. Cordell Etchison.
My thoughts and prayers are with the Etchison family. May God comfort and bless you in the days ahead.
My condolences to the entire family. Jim may have been the smartest person I ever worked with. Although he worked for me for a few years at Frigidaire I know that I learned more from him than he ever learned from me. Also a great friend. He will be missed.
Sorry to learn of Jim's passing. I am keeping all of the family in my thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.
To the Etchison family: I am so sorry to hear about the loss of Jim, please know that you're in my thoughts and prayers. May God comfort you at this difficult time.
I have fond memories of Jim when we worked together in St. Louis and as we saw each other in later years at Frigidaire functions. My thoughts and prayers go out to his entire family during this difficult time.
Jim was both my cousin and friend. We grew up as kids together and were in high school at the same time. Jim was smart, had a great sense of humor and was energetic. In high school he was always on the honor role, in student government, played basketball and track and was the quarterback on the football team. We went to different universities, but when Jim was married in Louisiana 1972, I was his best man. Jim became a very successful businessman in the corporate world and like everything he did, he worked with a "full speed ahead" attitude. After he was diagnosed with cancer at 52 years of age, he set about to change his life. He adopted a healthy diet, did not drink and became an avid daily bike rider. About four years ago Jim drove his jeep from Texas to Florida to visit me and my family for several days. We had a great time together. Both Jim and I both shared the joy of reading books and we discussed how much we liked e-books. He said his problem was that he bought too many books and would be reading several at the same time. One of the greatest things about Jim was his commitment to his family - especially his children. He was always there for them and helped them in so many ways. Jim was also very interested in Etchison family history and when he was in Florida I gave him a story about our great grandfather who was one of the early settlers in Clay County around 1850. He was thrilled to read this history. A few weeks ago I looked at old Flora high school year books for photos of Jim. In the back of the 1965 book is a photo of Jim and I at Etchison Bros. Appliance. Jim is inside an empty TV set and I am standing by. He wrote, "I look great on TV don't your think?" I was planning on seeing him soon and taking a copy of that photo to show him and tell him he did look great on TV. But we ran out of time. God Bless you, Jim. Rest in peace. Love Cousin Don
It was a joy to know him and to work for him and with him. All the best to the family.
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Jim; I know how much you all loved him; prayers for strength and guidance during this difficult time; sending my deepest sympathies. Many great memories!!
Prayers for the Family, so sorry for your loss!
I was saddened by the news of Jim's passing. May God bless and comfort you and give you peace as you remember him and all he meant to each of you.
My sincere sympathy to the family of Jim. He was a wonderful man and I have great respect for Jim as a coworker at Conn's. God Bless you all.
May you all be blessed and know that he is alive in all of our hearts.
Jim was a great guy and always had an interesting take on things. Sorry for you loss.
Joe & Myrna, We are so sorry for your loss. Prayers for the family.
So sorry for your loss.
To all the siblings, Jim is the one I never got to know so I can only imagine he was a great brother in your wonderful family. May his soul rest in peace in paradise with Jesus. God bless you all.
Jim was a fighter and lived life to the fullest till the end. I look back with fond memories on the last five Augusts that I got to spend time with Jim at his summer home in Rico, Colorado. I always looked forward to the adventures we would have and the time we got to spend together. Thanks for being my cousin and sharing your home and yourself with me. Rest in peace cuz.
Sorry to hear of your loss. Thinking of all of you at this time.
I was saddened to hear of Jims passing. We were neighbors from my 3rd grade on after moving to Stanford road in Flora. He was always kind with a sly smile and quite a charming person. My prayers for his family
I want to express my deepest sympathy to the family. So sorry for your loss. Hugs and prayers your way.
Jim and I became good friends through the many NATM meetings we attended over the years. I always knew it would be a good meeting if Jim was going to be there. A remark, or a look from Jim would get us both laughing, but we would always get a lot accomplished. When Jim left Conn's, and worked with Electronics Express, we would talk on the phone about the business, and appliance strategy, in between the jokes. He was one of the sharpest merchants in the appliance business, but more importantly, he was one of the best people I ever met. Jim, Keep Heaven laughing until I get there. Save a spot for me at the meeting.
R.I.P. JIM
Dear Jim and all of your friends and family: We will miss you and your compassionate manner and great sense of humor. You make the after world a better place to be and while I'm not in a hurry to get there, knowing you are there makes it a better place. I'm sure you are already a hit with our lord God in heaven. You have left us all with so many wonderful memories. Missing you, Mike Flynn Naples, Florida
My condolences to your family during this time of loss. My father Phillip E. Mann and Jim's dad Lindsey were close friends.
I am so sorry to hear of Jim's passing. Have been making plans to attend our 50th reunion and learned of his death. I was so looking forward to seeing him again at reunion. My condolences to family.
We are both sorry for the loss of a longtime friend and sorry for the grief of a family we also think of as our own.
Jim was a very good friend to us at Avanti Products but far more important than just being a business friend, he was a man of unparalleled integrity that was respected by all of us who were fortunate enough to conduct business with him. The Appliance Industry has lost one of it's "Giants". Our Deepest Sympathies to his family and may God rest his soul. Dave Byerly AVANTI PRODUCTS
What a wonderful guy your Dad was. Jim and I had conversations that, in my mind, will last a lifetime. So sorry for your loss.
To Jim's family. So sad to hear of your loss of Jim. Was looking forward to seeing him at our 50th class reunion in September. I last saw him at our 40th reunion and was blessed to spend time visiting with him (after not seeing him for 40 years) that evening. As I recall from high school not only was he a talented athlete but was an honor student and musician. My prayers are with you in coping with loss of a family member.
Rico, Colorado will not be the same without Jim being just across the road from us. He was a good friend to my mother, Ginger Hinton, my brother and his wife, Patrick & Bobbie Hinton, and my daughter and son-in-law, LynAnne and Larry Smith as well as to us. He was always willing to help in any way needed. We were stimulated by his conversations with us about many different subjects. He had a heart of gold, as they say. We loved him and are saddened and will miss him every summer, just as we did last summer. We lifted up many prayers on his behalf. He has received the ultimate healing and we plan to see him again through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. We pray the comfort of the Holy Spirit for his family.
Greg and Family: I just heard of Jim's demise. I am so sorry for your loss. He was a great guy with exceptional intellect and wit. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
Frank & Bright Funeral Home
and Cremation Services
500 North Main Street
Flora, Illinois 62839
Phone : (618) 662-2141
Fax: (618) 662-4600
Email: [email protected]
