Jim Shepperd was a friend of mine. His jovial antics and stories were always expected and welcomed. Knowing him for about 10 years, his friendship proved to be one of a lifetime. Of the many veterans here in North Idaho, he was well known and very popular. His dedication to the American Legion and VFW is legendary, and provided many of us with understanding of patriotism for our great nation.

Stories here in The Press about Jim tell of his military service and family life. Beyond these snippets of his life, he was so charismatic that you were his lifelong friend, and looked forward to hearing his stories about growing up in Coeur d’Alene, and learning history that only a few have experienced. He told me of his friends that have passed, about growing up on Sherman Avenue, about neighborhoods around town, and how the business community grew with the times, remembering gas stations that are no longer here. He related stories of hotels that came and went, and his favorite fishing holes around Lake Coeur d’Alene. Yes, my friends, his memories were certainly a living history of the area.

Here, I have reprinted two paragraphs that appeared in my “Hometown Heroes” articles. Telling all of Jim’s stories would certainly be a treatise, but a little about him goes a long way. In a “Home for the Holidays” article a few years ago, the salty old sailor, who took boot camp at Farragut, related one of his war time memories:

World War II Navy Veteran Jim Shepperd relates an experience while on watch on his ship in the Red Sea at Christmas time 1945, on a mission to transport home our warriors from battlefields to homecoming parades and family. The young sailor was hoping to see the place where Moses split the sea as an escape for the Israelites from the pursuing Egyptians. As he viewed the horizon, he gazed up at the clear night sky and was reminded of the Star of Bethlehem that shown over the place of the birth of the son of Joseph and Mary. The war was over and Jim said for the first time in his life he understood what is meant by “Peace on Earth.”

Another memorable occasion was the Veterans Day ceremony in 2011:

This Veterans Day had special significance. The repeating date occurs only once in a century for each of the first 12 months, and at the Third Street Veterans Park at 11 a.m., on the 11th day of the 11th month, of the 11th year, World War II Navy vet Jim Shepperd rang the veterans’ bell 11 times in commemoration of the end of the “war to end all wars,” World War I, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. Armistice Day, also known as Remembrance Day, commemorates the armistice between the Allies and Germany, and was signed at Compiegne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front, effective at 11 a.m. that morning. The war officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles, outside the town of Versailles, France. In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Nov. 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day, and an act of Congress made it an official holiday on May 13, 1938. The act was amended in 1954 to strike out the word “Armistice” and insert the word “Veterans,” and on June 1, approval of this legislation made Nov. 11 a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

Jim is certainly a veteran deserving to be honored. Many of us will remember him ringing the bell for years to come. Seaman James Julian Shepperd died Feb. 21 at age 90. You are remembered my friend. God bless you.