James John "Jim" Kuglin, Sr.

James John “Jim” Kuglin, Sr., 91, went to be with God on February 8, 2020, from his hometown of Great Falls while surrounded by family. A vigil service will be held on Friday, February 14, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. at O’Connor Memorial Chapel. Funeral liturgy will be held on Saturday, February 15, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church with rite of Committal to follow at Mount Olivet Cemetery.O’Connor Funeral Home is handling arrangements. What an incredible man and a life well-lived! He was a very strong person. Jim was born on January 23, 1929, to Thomas and Rose Kuglin, and raised on the family dairy in the Flood Road area. He married Charlene Anne Dohmeyer on June 2, 1951. They shared just shy of 65 years of married life when Char passed in 2016. Jim, or as mom lovingly called him, Thunderbird, showed unending devotion to Char with his unfailing care of her as she aged. He took every opportunity to visit her at the cemetery and always offered an intention for her each Sunday at Mass.The family includes six children and their mates: Michael Kuglin and Kathy McDermott, David and Anne Kuglin, Barb Kuglin (Dock Philpot), Jamie and Vicki Kuglin, Polly Kuglin and Joe Aline, Dana and Kelle Kuglin.Each child was lucky to have an “old school” upbringing that included family vacations, Fourth of July fireworks, and many a boat ride with Jim at the wheel, and many other joys. This family is even larger, of course, including six grandsons and six granddaughters, his “even dozen”: Jason, Amelie, Rosalie, Jeremy, Cody, Jericho, Haley, Christalie, Israel, Ethan, Amberlie, Annabella; and 11 great-grandchildren.He was a wonderful, caring Grandpa - attending sporting events, concerts, recitals, and any school activity – always wanting to spend as much time as possible with them. In addition to all the aforementioned people, Jim’s family also includes many nieces and nephews and friends who he truly cherished. Jim’s work life consisted of many things. As a young boy, growing up on The Kuglin Dairy, southwest of Great Falls, he shared in all of the farm duties. Jim served proudly on a Naval Submarine immediately following World War II. One of his most memorable experiences in the Navy was traversing the Panama Canal. When Jim came back to Great Falls, he attended and graduated from the College of Great Falls. This education led to an accounting career, eventually ending up as the accountant for a large residential construction company. Here, the house building adventure began. Jim soon went out on his own, starting C-J Construction which eventually became Jim Kuglin and Sons Builders. He spent many hours with his family in construction and numerous homes were built throughout Great Falls. He also enjoyed volunteering at his church and was an active member of each of the Westside Catholic parishes at different times in his life. Jim’s devout Catholic faith was a driving force in his life. Jim enjoyed the cabins at Logging Creek and Seeley Lake. His “hobbies” included cribbage, pinochle, and most notoriously antiquing culminating in “Jim’s Grantiques.” He was an infamous Junker. Jim was preceded in death by his parents; his siblings, Willy, Rose, Joe, Ted, Tom and their spouses. Jim truly was one of a kind and they don’t make them like him anymore.