Jim Fredrick Brown

If they made a movie about Jim's life it might be rejected for being "exaggerated and too hard to believe," but it's all true!

Jim graduated from Stadium High School in Tacoma and went on to play quarterback when he enrolled at Pacific Lutheran, PLU.

Jim got his pilot's license at age 16, before he even got his driver's license.  He later purchased his own Cessna 172 XP and flew until he was 80 years old.  His brother Jack took up flying, and they went on many trips together, all over the United States.

One of his proudest moments was taking flight training in Florida to experience flying a fighter jet.

In 1959 he married Nancy Baker and raised three sons:  Craig, Scott, and Keith.

He loved the sea, and anything water related.  He was a hard hat diver for the city of Tacoma  and also a skindiver, working at McNeil Island (with the convicts) to remove old pilings at the ferry slip. 

He was a founding member of the Tacoma Scubaneers, and also opened the second dive shop in Washington state. 

He went to work at Boeing, who encouraged him to take engineering courses.  He became a lead engineer and was especially proud of being on the team that developed the auto landing system for the first 747.

In 1972 Boeing "shut down their lights," and Jim turned to commercial fishing.  His boat, the Tag-a-long, allowed him to do deep sea fishing for tuna in the waters near Alaska.

When Boeing came back to Seattle, Jim returned to Boeing to complete a 35-year career.

Somewhere along the way he managed to become a professional bowler and also a goalie for the Bellevue Americans.  Before we had the Kraken, Seattle did have a professional NHL team, The Totems. When their goalie was injured, Jim was called up to take his place!

"Just for fun" he also managed to race sail boats with the Corinthian Yacht Club in Swiftshire and Victoria Harbor.

In 1990 he married Gail Hill, and on January 1 they celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary.

A life well lived--all of it true!

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