After a short battle with cancer, James Lindley Patterson III, 56, of Bigfork, was taken to heaven on Sunday, Sept. 5, 2010, on the wings of his angels while surrounded by his loving family. Jim was born on Jan. 3, 1954, in Santa Monica, Calif., to Meryl Cook Patterson and Dr. James Lindley Patterson Jr. At the age of 4, he moved with his family to Butte. He attended school in Butte and graduated from Butte High School in 1972. Jim attended Montana State College World Semester at Sea, graduating from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., with a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. After graduation, Jim spent two years working with the Zoological Society in Jackson, Miss., where he developed a keen interest in elephants. He spent the next 25 years working with and training elephants on various circuses in the U.S. and Canada. He spent six months in Japan with Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus and upon returning to the U.S., met the love of his life and wife of 16 years, Michelle Lomando Patterson. They worked together on Garden Bros. Circus of Toronto, Canada, until retiring in 1999 and settled in Hazleton, Pa., with their 3-year-old son, Sam. Jim worked as a truck driver for Y.O.U. Trucking for the next eight years. In 2007, the family moved to Bigfork, where Jim continued driving for Jim Palmer Trucking until his death. In addition to his parents, wife Michelle, and son Sam, he is survived by his sister, Leslie Ann Patterson Selin, and husband, Lonnie, and their children, Kari Ann and Kelsey Paul, of Salt Lake City; aunt, Elizabeth LaBorde, and cousins, Barbara Schoenberger and John and Kathy LaBorde, all of San Diego; cousins, Benjamin and Linda Taylor, of Raleigh, N.C.; Dr. Gordon King, of Georgia; Mary Frances Jones of Duncan, Okla.; and Nancy Poole of Dallas; and sisters- and brothers-in-law, Mary Lomando and Fernando Li of Pompano Beach, Fla.; Dorothy and Ed Wood of West Hazleton, Pa; Lisa and Dennis Chapman of Kalispell; and Carla and Jeff Garber, and children, Danielle, Jeffrey and Christopher, of Newtown, Pa. His loving, four-legged companions, Nibby and Benny, will miss their nature walks with Jim. Jim will be greatly missed by his many friends and co-workers and will forever be remembered for his passion for life, devotion to his family, and respect for all animals and nature. Memorial services will be held at 10:30 a.m. today, Sept. 10, at St. Patrick s Episcopal Church, 30631 Montana Highway 209, Bigfork. Buffalo Hill Funeral Home is caring for the family. Friends may visit the website at www.buffalohillfh.com to leave notes of condolence for the family.