Jimmie Minnick was born on May 7, 1925 in Sturgis, South Dakota in a house that still stands. He lived there until he went into the Army in July of 1944. Jimmie became a Paratrooper Rifle Marksman and was stationed in Frankfurt, Germany. After finishing his duty in June of 1946, Jim returned to the states and relocated to Portland. He became a Portland Police Officer, married Vivian shortly after returning and soon had a family of three. He worked side jobs as a carpenter and bought, fixed up, and managed a handful of rental properties while living in SE Portland. In the mid 60’s, Jim and Vivian purchased their dream property in Boring. Jim was very proud of the fact that he built his home with his own two hands. Both he and Vivian and the children had a mini farm and very active in the community with 4H and FFA groups.
Jim retired from the Portland Police Bureau in 1975, where he had advanced to Detective for the District Attorney’s Office. With retirement came a side job of custom hay bailing and many fishing trips to various Oregon lakes, his favorite being Lake Billy Chinook. As the golden years set in, Jim passed his haying business on to his partner. He and Vivian enjoyed several trips to various states in the USA. Jim lost Vivian in 2011 He had remained in their family home until his passing, enjoying his many grand and great grandchildren.
Jim is survived by his sisters, Mildred Wright of Portland and Linda Dean of Damascus; 3 children, Jan Gerard, Cheryl Warren, and Kenny Minnick; 7 grandkids and 11 great grandkids.