William K. James, 10 Mar 1949 - 16 Jan 2005

JAMES, HUCKINS, BAESSLER, BREITBACH

Posted By: Stephen D. Williams
Date: 2/21/2006 at 13:41:54

William K. James
Born in Iowa City, Iowa on Mar. 10, 1949
Departed on Jan. 16, 2006 and resided in Jamestown, NC.
Visitation: Wednesday Jan. 18, 2006
Service: Thursday Jan. 19, 2006
Cemetery: Vernon Cemetery

William K. James lost his long hard fought battle against cancer on January 16, 2005. He was motivated by several sayings throughout his life: “Comedy cures and humor heals”: was his favorite.
In his youth, Bill was active in his church, participated in many extracurricular activities in high school and was an Eagle Scout.
Bill was truly dedicated to education, and touched many, many lives. He would say: “The student is the customer,” and worked for his students first and foremost. He graduated from Boone Valley of Renwick High School in 1967, and Iowa State University in 1973 with a B. S. in Industrial Arts and Education. He taught middle school and high school for 17 years, and coached high school football and basketball in Williamsburg, Iowa, and Sigourney, Iowa. In 1988, Bill earned his Master’s Degree and then his Doctorate in 1991 from the University of Northern Iowa—the only school in the nation to offer a Doctorate of Industrial Technology. His book, Ideas: Creative Problem Solving, is being considered for use as a workbook in middle schools. He served on several national accreditation committees, both at the high school and college levels, and worked on numerous projects for NASA.
Dr. James came to Greensboro area as Graduate Coordinator in the School of Technology at North Carolina Agriculture and Technology. He originated the Master of Science in Industrial Technology Program, and most recently the PhD program for North Carolina A. &T. School of Technology. This program is part of a consortium of several universities throughout the United States. In 2000, Bill was honored as Professor of the Year in North Carolina A. & T. School of Technology, and in 2003 was named regional Professor of the Year.
In private life, Bill has participated in Jamestown Youth Recreational League as a basketball coach. He has been active at the Jamestown United Methodist Church as a Sunday school teacher of the adult Anchor class. He has also donated many hours to LifeSpan, Inc. of High Point and at many area elementary schools in the area as a writing mentor, science fair judge, and teaching problem solving skills.
Bill’s battle with his disease was truly heroic and inspirational. His caring spirit and strength of character will be missed by many, including: his close-knit neighbors, countless students and friends.
Funeral services will be 4:00 PM Thursday January 19 from Jamestown United Methodist Church. The family will receive friends from 6:00 – 8:30 pm Wednesday at Cumby Family Funeral Service in High Point. Burial will be in the Vernon Cemetery in Hardy, Iowa.
Surviving are his wife, Christine; children, Jeremy Dean James of Oklahoma City, OK; Jennifer Jo Huckins of Jamestown, NC; Andrew Josiah Huckins of Burlington, NC; his mother, Charlene Baessler James of Hardy, Iowa; sister, Julie Breitbach of Waverly, IA; brothers, Paul James of Vancouver, WA; Douglas James of Hardy, IA; Neal James of Swisher, IA; 6 nieces and nephews.
Memorial gifts may be directed to Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021; Lance Armstrong Foundation, P. O. Box 161150, Austin, Texas 78716-1150; LifeSpan, Inc., 940 Beaumont Avenue, High Point, NC 27260; or Hospice of the Piedmont, 1801 Westchester Drive, High Point, NC 27262.

www.cumbyfuneral.com