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Obituary for James A. Vanderpool
James A. Vanderpool, 74, of Stuart, formerly of Monteith passed on to heavens gates on Thursday, January 1, 2015 at the Community Care Center in Stuart. Visitation will be held on Sunday, January 4th at the First Congregational Church in Stuart from 4 to 6 PM. Celebration of Life service will be held at 11AM on Monday, January 5th at the First Congregational Church in Stuart. Memorial contributions may be directed to the James A. Vanderpool Memorial Fund and sent in care of the funeral home. Online condolences may be left at www.johnsonfamilyfuneralhome.com.
Jim was born February 19, 1940 to Merle and Violet (Mensing) Vanderpool in Greenfield, Iowa. He grew up in Greenfield and graduated from Greenfield High School with the class of 1958. Following graduation he attended Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon for a short time. The weather and homesickness brought him back home to Greenfield. He began working for the Iowa Department of Transportation and retired 36 years later. He was always busy. He had to have a project to be working on. Shortly after retiring he began to remodel the house in Monteith. First came the garage and then on to the house! It was a beautifully done project when he was finished. From the woodwork to the rafters.....he did it all. He also worked during the summer months at Nations Bridge County Park doing maintenance. In addition he began driving school bus for West Central Valley of Stuart. This was truly his most loved profession. He was into the safety for each and every one of his kids on the bus.
He said many times that was the job he loved going to each day. Up at 5 and at the bus barn to have coffee with the gang. He would then go back home and work on the house until it was time for the afternoon route.
On June 29, 1985 he was united in marriage to Judith Clouser Randolph at Springbrook State Park in Guthrie County. The couple made their home in Guthrie Center for a short time before moving to Monteith where they lived for nearly 30 years.
Jim was a member of the First Congregational Church in Stuart. He loved the music of the Gaithers and other Southern Gospel performers. He was an avid Iowa Hawkeye fan! Football or basketball...it didn't matter. He enjoyed learning to square dance and joined the Winterset’s club and later the Casey Snappy Steppers. He would be found at a dance in the area 2 to 3 nights a week. He loved to travel back to Oregon and California to visit family. He took great pains in organizing each trip. His favorite was the Columbia River Gorge and Multinomah Falls. His last big trip was a train trip from Minneapolis to Portland. His health was beginning to decline and driving was not an option. He loved gardening in his huge flower garden. He loved to share starts of plants and would help get them planted for anyone who needed beautiful flowers. He was a talented craftsman and sold many of his Noah's Arks at craft sales around the county.
He was preceded in death by his parents Merle and Violet Vanderpool and his brother,Leroy Vanderpool.
Jim leaves behind his loving wife , Judy of Stuart;Children: Kathy (Andy) Hennessy of Des Moines, Kevin(Lori) Vanderpool of Galt, California, Calista (Jeff) Nichols of Des Moines, Robin (Mike) VanRoekel of Des Moines, and Douglas Randolph of Des Moines; eight grandchildren and one great grandchild; Brother Glen "Skip" (Jan) Vanderpool of Spencer; Sister in law Kathy Bye of Cambridge, Mn; Several cousins, nieces and nephews, family and many friends that will miss him dearly.
A special thank you to all of those who have helped with his care during the long fight with Alzheimer's. The visits and encouragement during this long path have been so appreciated.
