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James Paul Winslow, Sr. |
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February 19, 1928 ~ November 15, 2017 |
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November 20, 2017 |
James Paul Winslow, Sr., 89, of Troy, died
Wednesday, November 15, 2017, in his home on
Savage Lake, surrounded by his children and his
cats. Funeral Mass starts at 10 a.m. Tuesday,
November 21, at the Immaculate Conception Catholic
Church in Troy, with Father Richard Kluk
officiating. Burial with military honors will
follow at the Milnor Lake Cemetery.
Jim was born February 19, 1928, in Sheridan,
Montana, to Ervin W. “Dutch” and Elizabeth
“Libby” (Shafer) Winslow. The family moved in
the 1930s to Idaho and then to the Yaak in
northwestern Montana, where Jim’s father worked
for the Civilian Conservation Corps.
From there, the family settled on land at Savage
Lake, three miles south of Troy. Jim graduated
from Troy High School in 1946.
He joined the U.S. Navy on May 4, 1948, and
served for four years. Color blindness kept him
from getting into flight school, but he still
fulfilled his love for aviation as crew chief on
a B-24 Liberator making surveillance flights
over the Aleutian Islands in Alaska and in
Italy. He was honorably discharged May 2, 1952,
as a Second Class Petty Officer structural
mechanic.
Jim always spoke with great pride about his
service in the Navy.
While stationed in Naples, Italy, Jim met his
future wife, Nunzia Ferraro. They were married
in Italy in a civil ceremony and later, on
September 14, 1952, in the Catholic Church in
Libby. Nunzia (Nancy) and Jim raised three
children in Troy. Jim and Nancy moved to a home
they built at Savage Lake – on the Winslow ranch
– in the mid-1980s. Nancy died at home on
November 24, 2005.
Jim worked as a mechanic for the J. Neils Lumber
Co. in Libby after high school and returned to
that job after he was discharged from the Navy.
In the early 1950s, he went into business for
himself, establishing a construction company and
hiring a crew that built mostly logging roads in
the forests of Northwestern Montana. He loved
his work and running heavy equipment – his
bulldozers, backhoe, grader, dump truck – you
name it.
He also found time to become an emergency
medical technician for the Troy Volunteer
Ambulance. Later, he became involved with the
Troy Volunteer Fire Department and Troy Rural
Volunteer Fire Department, serving as chief of
the city department for a time during his
45-year stint.
At one time, he was mayor of Troy.
Through raising a family and running a business,
he managed to get his pilot’s license as a young
man, and flew a Cessna 150, Cessna 170B
taildragger and Cessna 182 Skylane before – in
his mid-60s – learning to fly aerobatics.
He bought a Citabria aerobatic airplane, and
after taking lessons in Sandpoint, flew with a
three-plane team of Citabrias that performed
stunts at airshows in Montana and Idaho. His
aileron rolls, loops and inverted flight – with
colored smoke trailing from the fuselage --
entertained the audience, but scared the heck
out of his family.
In his retirement on the home place, he restored
antique trucks and fixed engines and such,
spending many an hour in his shop, often with
visitors stopping buy.
At age 79, Jim met Dorothy Peterson while
grocery shopping in Rosauer’s in Libby.
They married July 5, 2008, and lived at the
Savage Lake home, making trips to California,
Michigan (on Amtrak), Missouri and Las Vegas,
among other destinations. They had eight happy
years together before Dorothy died on October
13, 2014.
Jim is survived by his son and daughter-in-law,
James Paul and Roxanne “Cookie’’ Winslow, Troy,
daughters Lisa Winslow and partner Lori Castaldo,
of Chico, California, Carmen Winslow of Butte
and Pat Grantham of Clancy, Montana,
grandchildren Denver (Anita) Winslow of Troy,
and Amy (Keenan) Pfeifle, of Billings,
great-grandchildren Derrick Winslow of Missoula,
Cy Winslow of Troy and Reese and Kenna Pfeifle
of Billings, brothers Ray Winslow and Bill
Winslow, Bull Lake Road, and sisters Jeanne
Lindholm and Jane (Martin) Weber, all of
Spokane.
Schnackenberg and Nelson Funeral Home of Libby
is in charge of arrangements. Online condolences
and memories may be shared at
www.schnackenbergfh.com.
Memorials may be made to the Troy Volunteer Fire
Department. |
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