James L. Adams' Obituary
James “Pa Jim””Pops””Gramps” L. Adams, 78, of Clinton passed away Monday, January 2, 2023 at Martin Memorial Hospital North in Stuart, Florida.
Visitation and viewing will be Sunday, January 8, 2023 from 10:00 am until 12:00(Noon) at the Clinton Chapel Snell-Zornig Funeral Homes & Crematory. A Celebration of Life will immediately follow the visitation at the Vista Grande in Clinton. Online condolences may be expressed by visiting his obituary at www.snellzornig.com.
James Leslie Adams was born December 5, 1944 in Oelwein, Iowa, the son of Leslie Myron and Ruth Ann (Kunkle) Adams. He married his one true love Margie Saathoff in Oelwein, Iowa on March 6, 1965. Jim was hard working to his very core starting his career with the Great Western Railroad, which merged with Northwestern Railroad, then Union Pacific Railroad, which he retired after 30 years of service. Jim also worked in maintenance at PMI for nearly 30 years. Even after retirement, sitting still was not in his DNA and a day didn’t go by where he couldn’t identify work that “needed” to be done. With his charming personality, Jim had no problem enlisting the service of those around him, and because of this has helped to instill discipline and great work ethic into countless generations to follow.
Although Jim was a true Midwesterner, he spent his last years in Florida where he made numerous friends, had many adventures, and enjoyed the much warmer weather. He traveled back to Iowa often to spend time with family and meet his new generation of great-grand children whom he immensely adored.
Jim knew the importance of living life to its very fullest, and there is no doubt that he did.
He will be extremely missed for his clever sense of humor and unmatched sarcasm that was the entertainment of every event he attended.
Jim’s favorite hobbies included giving out nicknames and collecting treasures during his travels. He took the saying, “one mans trash is another mans treasure”, quite seriously. Jim will forever be remembered for his impressive display of these treasures in a way that only he could. In Clinton, if you didn’t know Jim by name, you certainly knew him as “the guy who drives the big yellow truck”, affectionately known as “The Adams Family.”
He is survived by his wife Margie of Port Saint Lucie, Florida; children: Tracy Schluns of Clinton, Iowa, and Tom (Trisha) Adams of Charleston, South Carolina; unofficially adopted daughter Jennifer “Fer”(Eric) Ryan of Clinton; five grandchildren: Codie(Mini Hinsch)Adams, Lindsay Adams, Jacob Adams, Lexie(Nate)Harden and Connor Schluns; two great grandchildren: Alayah and Ayeson Adams; honorary grandchildren: Abbie Sprague, Christopher Lucke, Jordan Phillips, Brady Grell and Sydney Grell; brother: George(Judy)Adams of Clinton; and many nieces and nephews.
Jim was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and two sisters.
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