James Frank Buresh was born March 10, 1924, in Sioux City, IA. He was the oldest of three sons born to James Frank Buresh Sr. and Alice Rose (Atkinson) Buresh. Jim graduated with honors from East High School in Sioux City in 1942. He then enrolled at Iowa State University in the fall of 1942 for two quarters before being drafted. He served in the United States Army Air Corps from 1943 to 1946 during WWII. While in the Army Air Corps, he attended Hamilton College in Clinton, NY to be a commissioned weather officer and where he studied Radio Direction Findings (RDF). He was then stationed at the Gander, Newfoundland Net Control Station plotting bearings for aircraft RDF for the North Atlantic area. After returning home in 1946, Jim enrolled at Morningside College before transferring back to Iowa State to earn his BS degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1949. On August 21, 1948, he married Doris Lorraine Corrie whom he met on a blind date while they were both attending Morningside. They were married by the President of Morningside College the day after Doris earned her BS in Advanced Elementary Education. They moved to Marshalltown in September of 1949 where Jim began his career with Fisher Controls as a product design engineer. To their union, five children were born; David, Janet, Gary, Diane and Janine. They built their first home in 1956 as one of the original homeowners on Orchard Drive. Jim retired from Fisher Controls in 1983 in Engineering Administration.

Jim was active in the First United Methodist Church where he served on many committees including the Tri-M group, church board, Tri-M family camping at the Methodist Cabin in Clear Lake, the Tri-M Pot Luck Friends of the church, and participated in the church choir for several years. Later, Jim and Doris were members of Hope United Methodist Church. Jim was also active in the Souvenir Club, Optimist Club and the Marshalltown Men’s Chorus. In 2012, he participated in the Honor Flight to Washington D.C. Jim continued to receive patriotic honors, and in October of 2019 he was gifted a Quilt of Valor. Jim enjoyed his family, traveling home and abroad, Canadian fishing trips, gardening and swimming at the YMCA.

Jim was preceded in death by his parents, his wife of 60 years, Doris, two daughters; Janet, most recently Diane Ponche on October 27, 2022, and two brothers; Robert D. Buresh and Tom K. Buresh.

Jim is survived by his sons; David (Donna) Buresh, of Cedar Rapids, IA and their family, Gary (Bernice Fischels) Buresh, of Lansing, IA and their family, son-in-law Tom Ponche, of St. Louis, MO and his family, and daughter Janine (Larry) Barnes, of Ames, IA and their family.

The family would like to give a special thank you to the staff at Glenwood Place for the care and kindness that our father received for the 13 years Glenwood Place was his home.