Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
WEST VALLEY, Utah - James J. Simmons, 80, former longtime Ironwood, Mich. resident, died Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015, at Hunter Hollow Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center in West Valley. He had resided with his daughter and son-in-law in Grantsville, Utah, due to declining health.
Jim was born May 31, 1935, in Ironwood, son of the late Raymond and Alice (Saippa) Simmons, and graduated from St. Ambrose High School in 1952. He was employed in the meat department at the A&P store in downtown Ironwood prior to serving stateside in the U.S. Army from March 1955 to his honorable discharge as a corporal in March 1957.
Returning to Ironwood, Jim worked at the Friedman News Agency until 1975, when he and Fred Cerioni became partners in Northland Vending, operating the business until 1986. He then was employed at North Star Beverage in Hurley, Wis., retiring in June of 2000.
Jim was a member of Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church in Ironwood, Pere Menard Assembly 471, Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, and served as past Grand Knight and Faithful Navigator of Ironwood Council 1396. His hobbies included gardening, bird watching and building model airplanes.
On May 21, 1960, he was united in marriage to Dorreen J. Kirkley at St. Ambrose Catholic Church in Ironwood by the late Msgr. Joseph Seifert. Dorreen preceded Jim in death on Oct. 24, 2006.
Surviving are a daughter, Anita (Gary) Holewinski, Grantsville; son, James Jr. (Cindy), Ironwood; five grandchildren, Robert (Melissa) Holewinski, Eagle Mountain, Utah, Danielle (Matthew) Ward, Oakton, Va., James (Sam) Simmons, Black River Falls, Wis., Alan Simmons, Ironwood and Christine Simmons, Minneapolis; two brothers, Ray (Gloria), White Pine, Mich., and Brian (Janet Patterson), Wakefield, Mich .; two sisters, Alicia (Ted) Schmalz, Bessemer, Mich., and Marguerite (Al) Koski, Negaunee, Mich .; brothers and sisters-in-law, Sherry Holm, Ironwood, John (Maureen) Rood, Lake Forest, Calif., Thomas (Kim) Kirkley, Milwaukee, Renny Anderson, Mt. Horeb, Wis., Robert (Jolene) Kirkley, Yuma, Ariz., Lawrence Kirkley (Dan), Menomonee Falls, Wis., Sharon (Jim) Foley, Ironwood, and Terry Lynn (Ron) Nelson, Phoenix; and numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins and great-grandchildren.
Besides his parents and wife, Jim was predeceased by two brothers, Ralph in infancy in 1937, and Ronald, in 2008; a nephew, Ted Schmalz Jr .; niece, Linda Favero; brother-in-law, Eugene Kirkley and sister-in-law, Sandy Anderson.
Cremation has taken place in Utah.
Services, full military honors and interment will take place in Ironwood in the spring of 2016, at a date and time to be announced.
Arrangements have been entrusted to McKevitt-Patrick Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Ironwood. Condolences may be expressed online at mckevittpatrickfuneralhome.com.
