James Lloyd Johnson

WEST BEND, Wis. - James (Jim) Lloyd Johnson, 72, of West Bend, Wisconsin, passed away on Sept. 7, 2026.

Jim was born to Herbert and Mildred Johnson on Aug. 27, 1954, at Divine Infant Hospital in Wakefield, Michigan. As a child, he and his family traveled between Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Arizona and Nevada, instilling in Jim a love for the outdoors. As a teenager, he enjoyed bird hunting; downhill skiing at local hills; and riding his bike north of Wakefield to Lake Superior - a hobby he kept up with until the summer of 2025, even logging over 1,000 miles on local county roads near his home during the summer of 2024.

In high school, Jim excelled at basketball and developed an excellent jump shot before going on to play for Gogebic Community College. He then earned an accounting degree from Ferris State University in Michigan's Lower Peninsula and became a CPA, gaining his first job at Sentry Insurance in Stevens Point, Wisconsin.

Jim then moved to West Bend, Wisconsin, first working as an accountant at a local tannery. He later started his own CPA practice, which he proudly continued through the end of 2025.

While nothing could hold a candle to the Upper Peninsula in Jim's eyes, he had immense pride in the property and home he lived in for more than 40 years until present times. Jim held an admirable but endless commitment to DIY home projects and spent much of his free time maintaining his property.

In pursuit of sharpness of mind, he chose sobriety in the early 2000s. By doing so, he built an honest life in which he took time to enjoy the small moments - keeping a flame going on his wood-burning stove, so as to heat his home in the winters; being a favorite uncle to his nieces and nephews; taking evening walks down country roads to finish out a long day; coaching many a youth baseball team; and reveling in Brewers, Bucks, Badgers and Packers wins ... with associated grumbling here and there.

Above all else, Jim enjoyed taking care of those around him, including his neighbors, coworkers, and especially his children - through thick and thin.

Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Herbert and Mildred Johnson. He is survived by his sister, Myra (Joe) Warren; nieces and nephews; sons, Sam (Jessi) and Tyler (Maya); and one grandson on the way, who will be honored with the middle name of James.

Jim's Celebration of Life will be on Sept. 26 at 3 p.m. at Rigoni's Inn, 925 East Ayer St., Ironwood, MI, 49938.