James

Durre

James Paul Durre age 72 died Tuesday December 11, 2018 at his home.

He was born December 3, 1946 in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, the son of William H. and Ruth F. (Paul) Durre. They both precede him in death.  He was a helicopter pilot serving in the US Army as a Chief Warrant Officer 2 with a passion for flying.  He served one year in Vietnam and was awarded The Bronze Star Medal.  He continued flying for many years and shared the experience with many family and friends."

At the age of 23, he met the love of his life; Laura and they've been married for 48 years since. He knew he was a lucky man when he met his darling and didn't ever stop showing it.

At the age of 49, Jim graduated Magna Cum Laude from The Defiance College with a Bachelor of Science degree.   Never one to stop learning and making a better life for himself and his family, he received his CPA license from the State of Ohio in 2000.  He retired in 2006 as treasurer from Paulding Exempted Village Schools.  He was a 47-year Mason serving as Worshipful Master six times and a member of Kiwanis.

After retiring at the age of 60, Jim took an interest in cooking. He became quite the chef and almost always (not every time), he treated his family and friends to gourmet style dishes.  He was also able to get back to his love of woodworking.  He built up a wood shop most would envy and has made beautiful furniture, frames and knick-knacks for his family to cherish.  He could make anything out of nothing.  Jim had a lot of "stuff" as he called it.  (Not junk.)  He could fix anything with his "stuff".

After Laura retired, the two of them spent their winters in Florida to escape the much-dreaded Ohio winters. He loved the warm weather and the comfort it brought.  We all shared many fun memories in Florida.

He is survived by his wife, Laura Durre; two daughters, Renee Durre and Holly A. (Troy) Klopp; siblings, Jerry (Eva) Durre, and Janice (Don) Phlipot; mother-in-law and "adopted mom", Alice Rager; brothers-in-law, David (Mary) Rager, Mark (Amy) Rager, and Don Terry.

He is also preceded in death by an infant brother, Jerald, and sister-in-law, Janet Terry.

A Celebration of Life will be held December 30, 2018 at the Paulding VFW from 2 – 5 PM.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Holly's employer's charity, Operation KAVIC (Keller Assisting Veterans In Crisis), Keller Trucking, 24862 Elliott Rd, Defiance, Ohio 43512. Checks made to "Ravens Care" in memory of Jim Durre.

Den Herder Funeral Home, Paulding is handling with arrangements.   Please send online condolences to www.denherderfh.com

Laura, Renee, Holly and Troy have been blessed with his unconditional love every minute of every day. In the words of Glen Campbell, "And the gift I give to you, is the lesson that I learned, that when a love is true, it has nothing in return."  And so it has been.

We will miss Jim every single day, but we know he's lounging in a Hawaiian shirt, his shorts and flip flops listening to some Jimmy Buffet, with a little Merle Haggard mixed in. To the best man we've ever known – San Giamagnano and don't go over any Bump Bumps Dubby