Peacefully surrounded by his family, Jim passed away on July 28, 2022 at the age of 73. Jim is survived by his wife of 48 years, Cathy and sons James (Tara), Michael (Chantale), by his three grandsons Owen (Sheri), Easton, and Foster. He is also survived by his brother Bill, sisters-in- law, Karen Higham, Laura-Lee Bouchard (Roger), Sandra Pedrick (Tim), brother-in-law Bob Langdon (Irene), nieces Lorraine Higham, Annette Bennett, and Wendy Hrynkiw, and nephews Brendan (Taylor) and Cameron (Jenna) Bouchard and many Hutton family cousins. He was predeceased by his beloved grandmother Sarah Higham, his parents Arthur and Evelyn (nee Hutton), brother Frank, parents-in-law George and Patricia Bell and sisters-in-law Dagmar Higham and Brenda Langdon.

Jim was born on April 30, 1949, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Following the death of his mother at the age of 4 years, Jim was raised by his grandmother Sarah. His grandmother meant the absolute world to him, and he was fiercely protective of her. He spent his formative years of his life living on Beverly Street with his grandmother and brothers Frank and Bill. He remembered fondly the many Christmases spent at his aunt and uncles with his cousins.

In 1972, Jim completed his certification training in California as a commercial/construction diver and worked for Dominion Divers in Winnipeg for many years. He eventually branched out on his own and established JSH Marine Divers. He worked as a commercial/construction diver for 23 years. Prior to completing his certification in diving Jim was a skilled upholster.

Jim met his wife Cathy through mutual friends and when he returned from his diving training in 1972, they met at their friend’s wedding and sealed their relationship in a winter wedding on January 26, 1974. They bought their first house on Hazel Dell Avenue in Winnipeg and on June 27, 1979 they welcomed their first son James. They settled as a family moving to St. Moritz Road in 1982 and welcomed their second son, Michael on September 7, 1989. Jim and Cathy found a passion for cruising and spent a good portion of the winter sailing in the Caribbean. Jim loved sharing his passion for cruising, often there was a large collection of friends and family who would join them on their trips. Cathy and Jim were able to complete a family cruise with James, Michael, Tara, and their grandsons prior to Jim taking ill. It was a highlight that Jim often reminisced about. Jim took great pride in his boys and enjoyed every second getting to know their large circle of friends. He enjoyed watching them all grow into wonderful adults and up until his passing he continued to enjoy spending time catching up with the “kids from the neighbourhood” at gatherings. In 2008, Jim was thrilled to welcome his daughter-in-law Tara into the family and was very much looking forward to Michael and Chantale’s upcoming marriage.

Jim LOVED his grandsons immensely; he embraced the role of grandpa with great enthusiasm. Nothing thrilled him more than waiting for Owen, Easton, and Foster to arrive on Halloween for their annual costume picture. He may not have worn a costume, but his goofiness was plentiful in each photo. Although never much into sports himself, Jim spent many hours at hockey rinks and baseball fields in support of his grandsons after spending many years watching James and Michael play hockey. He loved when all the kids would come to the house for a swim and a BBQ. He looked forward to his and Cathy’s annual corn on the cob feast on the deck around the pool.

For many years, Cathy and Jim travelled to Amway conferences with a large circle of friends from both Canada and the USA that they met through the business. There is an abundance of stories of the road trips in Jim and Cathy’s touring vans they had over the years. We are sure that many friends will recall the coffee stops that were a must for Jim! Jim treasured the lifelong friendships he made through the business.

Jim loved cars, classic cars, he was an encyclopedia of car knowledge. It was a passion he developed with his dad after he bought his first classic, a 1958 Dodge Coronet back in 1988. Together they decided to buy and restore old cars. Jim was in charge of finding the cars, and also renewed the interiors with his upholster skills. Although Chrysler ‘fin era’ cars were their favorites, they also restored many others, including a 1962 Mercury and a 1930 Austin.

After his dad’s passing, Jim was invited to act as curator, and manage the inventory, of a soon to open classic and antique automobile museum. Excited at the opportunity to fulfill a lifelong dream, he accepted the offer, and the challenges which came with it. The building that would act as the museum was under construction. Jim completed the task of finding suitable, museum quality vehicles, that would be of interest to the paying public. The Tin Lizzie Car Museum opened its doors on May 7,1997.

After numerous inquiries from museum visitors about cars that might be for sale, Jim decided that selling cars would be of financial benefit to the museum and would also provide a much needed service to people who were looking to either buy or sell classic and antique automobiles. Regrettably, the Tin Lizzie Automobile Museum closed its doors in December 2002. The cars housed at the museum needed a storage facility.

Undaunted, Jim located a warehouse to accommodate the cars and opened Jim’s Classic Corner to provide the service of car storage and of bringing buyers and sellers together. He grew Jim’s Classic Corner into three warehouse locations and until his passing he continued to operate the business daily. Jim enjoyed many years in the car business, he most enjoyed meeting people who shared his same passion for classic cars.

The family wishes to thank Jim’s family physician, Dr. Mark Boroditsky for his care and concern over the past several years and Grant Morrison for his support and spiritual care.

Please join the family for a celebration of life on Sunday, August 21, 2022 from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, East End Arena (upper hall), 517 Pandora Ave E, Winnipeg MB

In lieu of flowers, donations in Jim’s memory can be made to Siloam Mission, Take Action at www.siloam.ca