James "Jim" Robert Rogers

James “Jim” Robert Rogers age 80, passed away Wednesday, May 5, 2021, at his home in Fairfield, IA.

V isitation for family and friends will be 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., Friday, May 28, 2021 , at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

A Celebration of Life will be held 11:00 a.m., Saturday, May 29, 2021 , at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints building in Fairfield, IA. Inurnment will be at a later date.

Memorials may be made to the Iowa Chapter of the American Parkinson Disease Association or Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s.  Cards and memorials may be mailed to Cheryl Rogers, 1303 Hilltop Lane, Fairfield, Iowa 52556.

Jim was born December 17, 1940, in Mesa, AZ to William Isaac “Ike” and Marva Eileen (Guthrie) Rogers.  He married Cheryl Ann McEwen in Las Vegas, NV on September 15, 1965. This last year they celebrated 55 years of marriage.  He loved his wife fiercely, was a family man at heart, wore an infectious smile, and demonstrated extraordinary patience while persevering with Parkinson’s disease.

Jim lived and served in the Fairfield community for 38 years. During his career he managed the JCPenney store on the square, worked for Coleman-Frizzell servicing large retail department stores with black hills gold jewelry throughout the Midwest and then finished his career at Telegroup, Inc. He enjoyed servicing his customers and making personal connections in the process.

As a devout Christian and active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jim studied the scriptures daily and routinely served in various capacities within his congregation. It was common to hear him preach during worship service and then immediately pick up a lesson manual and teach Sunday School the following hour. He loved to discuss gospel topics and share his love and passion of Christ and His scriptures with others.

Jim was known as a people person who loved to develop personal connections. This was a consistent feature of his personality that was manifest in all stages of his life. It was particularly true during the last 8 years with his dedicated and loving caregiver Emily Titus. Their time together and her nurturing hand was an absolute blessing in his life.

He was an innovator at heart. He was a master craftsman of boy scout pinewood derby cars. He built prototype cars and timed them on a home-built racetrack. He was a bread baker. Often tinkering with his personally designed low temperature oven to incubate bread starters.  Jim loved the Apple computer starting with the Apple IIe. In his spare time, he enjoyed fixing old computers and donating them to those in need. Prior to moving to Fairfield, Jim was involved in youth hockey programs in North Dakota and raised money to build arenas for the community.

Jim will be missed by his wife, Cheryl of Fairfield; his sons, Douglas “Doug” (Kathy) of Chandler, AZ, Darian (Jennifer) of Brentwood, TN, Chris (Shauna) of Cary, NC, Dustin (Madelyn) of Gilbert, AZ and Casey (Sarah) of Moon Township, PA; grandchildren, Jakob, Andrew, Cody, Ellie, AlexAnne, Nate, Wyatt, Sadie, Luke, Isaac, Zoe, Lincoln and Hazel; his caregiver Emily (Chris) Titus and their children Gavin and Gabby; and Jim’s siblings, Bruce (Nancy) Rogers of Washington, UT and Joyce Lisac of Mesa, AZ.

He was preceded in death by his parents Ike and Marva; and his brother, Kenneth.