James Clevenger

We are saddened, and yet somehow still chuckling, to announce the passing of a local legend, James A. Clevenger, who departed this world on September 20, 2023, at the spry age of 87. Born on the most romantic day of the year, Valentine’s Day in 1936, in Losantville, In, the town that would always be his home, James was as reliable as a John Deere. In the words of Mark Twain, “The secret of getting ahead is getting started,” and boy, did Jame know how to get started, especially when it came to mowing lawns and restoring antique tractors.

James was the youngest son of Paul Clevenger and Idris Clevenger- Brewer, and is also proceeded in death by his siblings Donald, Keith, Gordon and Max Clevenger and sister Pauline Cates. He was a 1954 graduate of Union School in Modoc. He was married to Jean Ann Clevenger on Dec 27, 1979, and became  the step father of Scott, Trent and Polly Reeder from the late Ferris Reeder. In 1981, at the age of 45, he had a daughter Jama Clevenger (Schneider). He became the grandfather of 6 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.

James was a man of many hats, from plant manager at the local CO-OP to school bus driver at Union School. He retired in 2002, but retirement for James was not about sitting back and taking it easy. Oh no, James was not the type to let the grass go under his feet, unless it was on his beloved golf courses. He also loved helping with the opening of the Mt. Pleasant Grocery/Gas Station in the mornings and would often start the coffee or get the donuts out of the lock box for the locals that met there each morning to catch up on the local gossip. He was also a card shark at the euchre table, and an avid fisherman. He was also known by the family as “Jughead” as he used to be an avid reader of the old Jughead comics. Many also knew him as a kind of jokester. There is a tale of him giving his oldest brother Don a sprayer with old sticky plant chemicals inside for his weeds. When the weeds were not dying off, he would just tell him to keep adding more water, which then made it even harder to pump the sprayer.

Please join us to celebrate James’s life on Wednesday, September 27, 2023 at 1:00pm at the Wilson-Shook Funeral Homes and Cremation Center (Thornburg Memorial Chapel) located at 2048 North 1000 West, Parker City, Indiana 47368. Visitation will be held prior to the celebration at 12:00pm.

In the words of Dr. Seuss, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” So let’s honor James by sharing memories and laughter. We invite you to leave your favorite memories of James and upload pictures to his memorial page at www.wilsonshookfh.com. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words, but a good story, especially one involving James is priceless.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of James Clevenger, please visit our floral store.