Individual Details
James Cecil Church
(1 Mar 1925 - 23 Apr 2009)
Inscription: TEC 5, US ARMY WORLD WAR II
Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN) - Friday, April 24, 2009: Church, James C., age 84, of Elk River, passed away peacefully at his home on April 23, 2009. A celebration of Jim's life will be held at Union Congregational Church UCC, 1118 4th St. NW, Elk River at 11 AM Tuesday, April 28, 2009. Visitation 4-8 PM Monday at Dare's Funeral Home 805 Main St. Elk River, 763-441-1212 and 1 hour prior to services at church on Tuesday. Interment Orono Cemetery, Elk River. His register book is at www.legacy.com. Full notice Sunday.
Star Tribune, Newspaper of the Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, Tuesday, May 5, 2009: By the time James Church moved to Elk River and began working on mine-safety programs, he had already helped liberate a village from the Nazis and land an American on the moon. Church was a senior engineer at a California aerospace firm that was developing and launching secret satellites used to keep tabs on the Russians when NASA came knocking in the early 1960s with an offer to help get the nation's space program off the ground. He took a pay cut and moved to Houston, where he worked as a design engineer on the Apollo spacecraft and planned for a moon landing. For several years, he worked with the nation's top contractors and rubbed elbows with astronauts such as John Glenn, Jim Lovell and Neil Armstrong.
Church, 84, had intended to publish a book about his NASA experiences, but died of liver cancer April 23 in his Elk River home.
Church's contributions to America's space program can be traced back to a high school math teacher he had in Portage, Wis.
"She told Jim, you can be anything you want to be, but you really have to work for it," said Church's wife of 63 years, Donna.
Church enrolled at the University of Wisconsin but after one semester enlisted in the Army. He took his Math 101 book with him as he served during World War II. He was part of a small contingent of soldiers who liberated a Belgian village during the Battle of the Bulge in 1944. After the war, he earned his engineering degree, Donna Church said.
His career took him to Iowa, where he worked for a utility and a company that manufactured radio and communications equipment. Then he went to California to work in the aerospace industry before heading to NASA. He ended his career by working in the area of mine safety for the Bureau of Mines at Fort Snelling, his wife said.
Church frequently spoke to students in Elk River schools about his patriotism and wartime experiences, many of which are recounted in the book "The Hero Next Door," and his role in developing the space program. He also advocated that schools hire more counselors to help high school students choose colleges and careers, said former Mayor and School Board Member Jim Tralle.
"He looked at going into the schools as an honor but also to put a personality to historical events," Tralle said. "When he talked about working on the Apollo, he did pitch kids going into engineering." His presentations engaged students, especially fourth-graders at Lincoln Elementary in Elk River. They teamed up with troubadour Larry Long in 2006 to write and record a song, "Don't Let Your Buddy Down," in his honor.
Church was never short on words. He often shared his opinion through letters he wrote to newspapers, Tralle said.
Church had many hobbies, including beekeeping, making snowshoes, American Indian culture and genealogy. He also liked to travel. A highlight was a 1994 trip when on the 50th anniversary of Normandy he was one of the first soldiers to return to the Belgian village he helped set free.
"They threw us a parade," Donna Church said. "It was totally unexpected. It was really exciting."
In addition to his wife, Donna, Church is survived by son Philip of Stillwater; daughters Lynette Robinson of Elk River and Bobbie Church of Seattle; sister Marjory Knell of Laurel, Md., and five grandchildren. Services have been held.
Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN) - Friday, April 24, 2009: Church, James C., age 84, of Elk River, passed away peacefully at his home on April 23, 2009. A celebration of Jim's life will be held at Union Congregational Church UCC, 1118 4th St. NW, Elk River at 11 AM Tuesday, April 28, 2009. Visitation 4-8 PM Monday at Dare's Funeral Home 805 Main St. Elk River, 763-441-1212 and 1 hour prior to services at church on Tuesday. Interment Orono Cemetery, Elk River. His register book is at www.legacy.com. Full notice Sunday.
Star Tribune, Newspaper of the Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, Tuesday, May 5, 2009: By the time James Church moved to Elk River and began working on mine-safety programs, he had already helped liberate a village from the Nazis and land an American on the moon. Church was a senior engineer at a California aerospace firm that was developing and launching secret satellites used to keep tabs on the Russians when NASA came knocking in the early 1960s with an offer to help get the nation's space program off the ground. He took a pay cut and moved to Houston, where he worked as a design engineer on the Apollo spacecraft and planned for a moon landing. For several years, he worked with the nation's top contractors and rubbed elbows with astronauts such as John Glenn, Jim Lovell and Neil Armstrong.
Church, 84, had intended to publish a book about his NASA experiences, but died of liver cancer April 23 in his Elk River home.
Church's contributions to America's space program can be traced back to a high school math teacher he had in Portage, Wis.
"She told Jim, you can be anything you want to be, but you really have to work for it," said Church's wife of 63 years, Donna.
Church enrolled at the University of Wisconsin but after one semester enlisted in the Army. He took his Math 101 book with him as he served during World War II. He was part of a small contingent of soldiers who liberated a Belgian village during the Battle of the Bulge in 1944. After the war, he earned his engineering degree, Donna Church said.
His career took him to Iowa, where he worked for a utility and a company that manufactured radio and communications equipment. Then he went to California to work in the aerospace industry before heading to NASA. He ended his career by working in the area of mine safety for the Bureau of Mines at Fort Snelling, his wife said.
Church frequently spoke to students in Elk River schools about his patriotism and wartime experiences, many of which are recounted in the book "The Hero Next Door," and his role in developing the space program. He also advocated that schools hire more counselors to help high school students choose colleges and careers, said former Mayor and School Board Member Jim Tralle.
"He looked at going into the schools as an honor but also to put a personality to historical events," Tralle said. "When he talked about working on the Apollo, he did pitch kids going into engineering." His presentations engaged students, especially fourth-graders at Lincoln Elementary in Elk River. They teamed up with troubadour Larry Long in 2006 to write and record a song, "Don't Let Your Buddy Down," in his honor.
Church was never short on words. He often shared his opinion through letters he wrote to newspapers, Tralle said.
Church had many hobbies, including beekeeping, making snowshoes, American Indian culture and genealogy. He also liked to travel. A highlight was a 1994 trip when on the 50th anniversary of Normandy he was one of the first soldiers to return to the Belgian village he helped set free.
"They threw us a parade," Donna Church said. "It was totally unexpected. It was really exciting."
In addition to his wife, Donna, Church is survived by son Philip of Stillwater; daughters Lynette Robinson of Elk River and Bobbie Church of Seattle; sister Marjory Knell of Laurel, Md., and five grandchildren. Services have been held.
Events
| Birth | 1 Mar 1925 | Illinois |  | ||
| Residence | 1930 | Age: 5; Marital Status: Single; Relation to Head of House: Son - Chicago, Cook Co., Illinois | | ||
| Residence | 1935 | Chicago, Cook Co., Illinois | | ||
| Residence | 1 Apr 1940 | Age: 15; Marital Status: Single; Relation to Head of House: Son - Portage, Columbia Co., Wisconsin | | ||
| Marriage | 14 Oct 1945 | Carthage, Hancock Co., Illinois - Donna Ruth Kirkpatrick | | ||
| Residence | 1951 | Burlington, Des Moines Co., Iowa | | ||
| Residence | 1988 | Age: 63 - Zimmerman, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | | ||
| Residence | 1993 | Elk River, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | | ||
| Residence | 1993 | Age: 68 - Zimmerman, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | | ||
| Residence | 2002 | Elk River, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | | ||
| Death | 23 Apr 2009 | Elk River, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | | ||
| civil | Wisconsin | | |||
| Burial | Orono Cemetery, Elk River, Sherburne Co., Minnesota | |
Families
| Spouse | Donna Ruth Kirkpatrick (1924 - ) |
| Child | Philip Cecil Church (1949 - ) |
| Child | Lynett Marie Church (1951 - ) |
| Child | Roberta Carol Church (1953 - ) |
| Child | Patrick James Church (1959 - ) |
Endnotes
5. Melvin Kirkpatrick & David Hudson, A Kirkpatrick Genealogy - The Family of James Kirkpatrick of South Carolina (n.p: 2nd Edition; 1995, n.d).