Jim Owen

James Rolland Owen, known as Jim to his friends and Papaw to his family, died on March 14, 2026, at the age of 93 at St. Thomas Highlands Hospital in Sparta. Born on March 25, 1932, in Springfield, Missouri, to Lewis Baker and Esther Campbell Owen, Jim moved with his family to Vallejo, California, at age 12 near the end of World War II. He worked several jobs to support his growing family before retiring as a Ship Scheduler for Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo. In 1993, he moved to White County, where he spent his retirement on his farm in Walling.

Jim found quiet joy in riding his tractor, assisting with sewing upholstery projects, and woodworking. A longtime and active member of West Sparta Church of Christ, he lived a steady, hardworking life marked by devotion to his family and his faith.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 64 years, Janice Prince Owen, who passed away on September 14, 2016; his grandson Aaron Ray Shafer; his son-in-law Doug Cook; and his siblings Charles Oscar Owen, Norma Jean Dotson, Margaret Cunningham, Ralph Owen, and Roy Lester Owen.

Jim is survived by his four daughters, Janet and Tom Etheridge, Jeannie and Ray Shafer, Joy Cook, and Julie and John Harrington; his grandchildren Adam Shafer, Kendra Maddux, Krista Lane, Kacy Smith, Kaleb Etheridge, Jenna Reese, Joelle Poissant, Joriel Shepherd, and Janae Lawrence; twenty-nine great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandson.