James Cunningham

James was born to Jeanne Cunningham and Thomas Cunningham Peggie on June 6, 1941, in River Rouge, Michigan.  He is predeceased by six half-siblings:  Thomas, Bill and Thelma (maternal) and Andrew, Walter and Shirley (paternal).  He joined the Army in 1959 and served during the Cuban Missile Crisis.  After returning home, he married Julia (Judy) Bowdler.  They moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he received his BS in Mathematics from Ferris State University.  They then moved to Mt. Pleasant, Michigan where he pursued his Masters in Mathematics at Central Michigan University; and where, more importantly, their son, James Bernard Cunningham, was born.  After teaching high school math for several years, he took a job as a Millwright (mechanical engineering).  His daughter, Beth, was born in 1971, and the family was now perfectly balanced!    Upon moving to Arizona, he worked building the Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant.  Jim joined the Masons in the desert in Arizona, and, in the following years, joined the Scottish Rites and Shrine.  His life was shattered when his son was killed during Desert Shield as a Marine.  The family then moved back to Michigan where he joined the US Postal Service as an Electronic Technician.  Moving to Florida in 2004, he pursued his love of adventure by traveling the Amazon, going to missionary building trips to Belize and the Bahamas.    His grandchildren, James and Ruby, were the loves of his life.  Other than his family, he loved the Grand Canyon and hiked its many trails many times over the years.    He peacefully died at home on October 30, 2019, after 54 years of marriage. 

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