James Albert (Jim) Gordon
Feb. 6, 1939 - Jan. 6, 2015
James Albert (Jim) Gordon, a 44-year resident of Grant County, was born February 6, 1939 to Lee and Lucy Gordon in Rogers Arkansas. He died peacefully at home on January 6, 2015 after an almost three-year-long battle with cancer.
His family moved to Hansen, Idaho, in 1953 where Jim graduated from Hansen High School in 1956 at the age of 17, having skipped the fifth grade. On the night of his graduation he left Idaho for the Warden area to join his family to help the Prior family break out new ground in the newly formed Columbia Irrigation District. He recalled that they had to cut sagebrush and place it on the roads to keep the equipment from sinking down.
In July 1958 Jim married Karen Schneider. They moved to Seattle where Jim began his banking career at Dexter and Broad for Peoples National Bank. In 1960 they had their first daughter Shelley and they moved to Othello. While working in Othello, the bank had a robbery and Jim and a fellow employee helped to apprehend the perpetrator. In 1962 their second daughter Julie was born. In 1964 they moved to Royal City to help start a new Peoples National Bank in the new town. 1966 took them to the Quincy branch. Jim passed the federal bank examiners test but decided that it was too much traveling for a family with two small children and accepted a position at Security Bank in Ephrata WA where the family moved. In 1967 they had a son, James (Jimmy). Jim was appointed Manager/Vice-President at the ripe old age of 27.
In 1978 he married Pat Webley Stierwalt, who had two children, John Stierwalt and Jill Stierwalt. They built a new home in Grant Orchards. After working for 25 years for Security Bank, Jim was approached by a group of Ephrata and Moses Lake businessmen to form a new bank called Grant National Bank which opened in 1981. Jim worked there until his retirement in 2004. His heart was always with his customers, especially Ag related, and he missed them dearly after he retired. He was active in the Lions Club, was on the board of directors for the Columbia Hospital and Basin Retirement home, was a Salvation Army contact and a member of several other organizations.
Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Lee and Lucy Gordon.
He is survived by his wife Pat, sister Patsy (Art) Prior, daughter Shelley Bond, granddaughter Jaymee (Rob) Gay, granddaughter Katey Bond, daughter Julie (Paul) Read, grandson Ben Read, grandson Sam Read, son John (Debbie) Stierwalt, granddaughter Alex (Frank) Lappano, granddaughter Larisa Stierwalt, granddaughter Mia Stierwalt, daughter Jill (Russ) Hensley, grandson Eric Hensley, grandson Tyler Hensley, grandson John Hensley, son Jimmy Gordon and Karen Wagner, 3 Nieces and their children.
Jim loved to hunt pheasants and deer and spent great times at Cliff Collin's ranch near Addy WA. He and Pat traveled quite a bit, bought a fifth wheel and joined the Rolling Eagles Camping Club and he loved taking his buddy "Snickers" for long walks around Soap Lake. In 2005 Jim and Pat moved to Soap Lake. He was especially fond of going to his 10 grandkids events and playing pinochle and poker. He was a board member of the Soap Lake Center and enjoyed many of their events. He was a dear and caring man who asked that the one thing he wished most is to have people say after he is gone "I hope they will say they were glad they got to know me". Jim was a very quiet humble man, who went to Heaven the way he lived his life here on earth; quietly and with dignity.
A memorial service will be held for Jim on Saturday, January 17, 2015, 11:00 a.m. at the Community Church of Ephrata.