James Raymond

TRAVERSE CITY — Jim was born to Frank and Helen Raymond of Lansing on April 2, 1934, and was one of six children.He is survived by his childhood sweetheart, Rosanne, to whom he was happily married for 54 years; as well as two sons, Gary and Tom both living in Austin, Texas. In addition, Jim is survived by two brothers, Bob Raymond of Ludington and Don Raymond of Lansing. He also has three grandsons: James Raymond living in the Seattle area and Travis and Kyle Raymond of Austin, Texas; along with numerous nieces and nephews.Jim was a loving husband, father and a strong family man throughout his lifetime, and seemed to never meet a stranger. He offered his friendship and ability to fix most things to neighbors and friends alike whenever the need was there.Over the course of his life, Jim kept himself in excellent physical condition as a former snow skier, avid golfer and general outdoorsman. He also loved to dance and took advantage of every opportunity he could.Jim spent 30 years as a teacher and basketball coach, beginning with his first job right out of college at Michigan State, when he became the head basketball coach for Benzonia High School in 1956. His next stop would be Clare High School in 1960, where he faced a program that had lost some 25-30 straight games before he took over the program. He turned the program around in his first year and his team won the very first game he coached. In 1963 he was recruited to coach at Saginaw Buena Vista, where he built a powerhouse team often ranked in the top five in the state, while winning multiple district and regional championships during his tenure. In 1970 Jim moved his family back north to coach both basketball and golf at Traverse City Central High School, and remained until he retired from coaching basketball in 1973; but remained as golf coach for a few years and then retired from teaching in 1986. When asked by one his sons why he had become a teacher, Jim told him that he had teachers when he was growing up that had helped mold him along his way in school and he wanted to give something back and return the favor.Jim and Rosanne then moved to Austin, Texas, to be close to their two sons and to escape the Michigan winters. Jim worked for a Pathology group before his final retirement in 1997. After 11 years in Austin, they began dividing their time between Traverse City and Scottsdale, Ariz.Jim passed away on Monday, Aug. 9, 2010, at Munson Medical Center after a sudden illness, with his loving family by his side. Though he will be sorely missed as a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend, Jim has touched many lives and will be remembered as one who made a difference to those who had the privilege to know him and to call him by one of these names.Visitation will take place Thursday, Aug. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home.The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 13, at the funeral home, with a luncheon to follow at the Presbyterian Church on Airport Access Road in Traverse City.In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the American Heart Association or to the American Cancer Society in memory of Jim.The family is being served by Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home; www.reynolds-jonkhoff.com