- Date Of Birth: January 15, 1947
- Date Of Death: September 22, 2019
- State: Michigan
Passed away Sunday evening, September 22, 2019 at his residence. Jim was born January 15, 1947 in Detroit, MI, the son of the late George and Eileen Gertrude (Renton) Bellinger and later, older brother to George. Jim married his loving wife, Mary (Miller), on June 10, 1972.
Jim was a baseball and track standout at Finney High School in East Detroit. He later attended Western Michigan University where he became a proud brother of Sigma Chi and graduated with a degree in business. During summer breaks he helped to construct Detroit’s Lodge Highway and keep order as a bouncer at The Roostertail, a Motown hot spot on the Detroit River. After graduating from Western Michigan University, Jim and Mary moved to Wheeling, West Virginia, then Charleston, West Virginia and finally Laurel, Maryland before settling in Kalamazoo for good.
Jim was an entrepreneur, he and Mary first founded a pizza & ice cream parlor on the edge of the WMU campus, and later he built Kalamazoo Sportswear & Regalia where he worked until his dying day. More recently Jim found another brotherhood within the Mason’s fold and became a member of the Kalamazoo-Anchor Lodge #22, Free & Accepted Masons. He was raised as a Master Mason January 27, 2007 and member of Valley of Grand Rapids, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite on May 5, 2007.
Jim was passionate about the Detroit Tigers, Red Wings, youth volleyball, and his beloved WMU Broncos. Jim was a man of eclectic tastes in art, music, and classic cars. He had a talent for photography, euchre, and wit. He was a Ford man, and in his final years finally felt comfortable driving a Lincoln, having worked his way through the Mercury years. His entrepreneurship knew no end nor bound; for 40 years, and up to the end, he took great pride in giving his customers the best in service and products and bringing his creativity to the Southwest Michigan community.
Whether ice cream for a child, t-shirts for a local event, or an ornate and hand-sewn cloak for a professional society he sought to provide only the finest in service and craftsmanship. He enjoyed learning and was eager and able to learn the details, facts, and process of anything and in turn, teach it to others. He took great pride in doing a job not just well, but great. Michigan suited him well in this regard; a state founded on workmanship, pride in labor, and world class results. He was proud of his home state and, specifically, his community in Kalamazoo, promoting it and supporting the members of it at every opportunity.
He traveled the world with Mary, the love of his life, and together for 47 years they worked hard and journeyed to all corners. Above it all, Jim was proud of his greatest creation, which was his family. His wife, three daughters, and five grandchildren were the light of his life and he marked their accomplishments well. With each achievement, Jim could be counted on to celebrate each one in its entirety, providing his friends and family a full update, in full detail. It was not just pride, but true joy and wonder for their accomplishments.
The day he entered the hospital for his open-heart surgery changed everything. Some may think for the worse and on some days they would be right. But really it made each day after that day a bonus, a gift, an opportunity to say I love you. This was not lost on any of his family and especially not on him. Jim, Jimmy, or Jimbo did not pretend to be a perfect man but mostly, he was right.
Jim is survived by his loving wife, Mary (Miller). Also surviving are his daughters, Stephanie Bellinger, Elizabeth (Nathaniel) Merrigan, Laura Bellinger; 5 grandchildren, Zadie, Eliana, Lewis, Noelle, and Margot; a brother, George (Vickie) Bellinger; in-laws Robert (Helke) Miller, Jeanne Singer, George (Judy) Miller, Kathleen Miller Stockman, Sue Stempien, John (Amy) Miller, Joseph Miller, Edmund (Suzanne) Miller, nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, and grand-nephews.
