James Martin Priest

James Martin Priest, 84, passed away at the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center of pneumonia on June 9.



He was born February 19, 1927 in El Paso, Texas to Gilbert C and Anna Mae McMillan Priest. They moved to Searchlight, Nevada in 1930. He graduated from Las Vegas High School at age 16 and entered the US Army Air Force in 1944. After a brief stay at the Army Camp in Kearns, Utah he was sent to Alaska for duty. He remained in Alaska a short time and was chosen to go to Officers Candidate School. He completed his training in San Antonio, Texas as a 2nd Lieutenant and returned to Salt Lake where he met Pauline Bonham. They were married May 3, 1947. This marriage was later solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple.



He received his Bachelor of Science degree in meteorology from the University of Utah. His 30 years of military service required him to spend many years overseas and he served two tours of duty in Japan. He was the navigator for special envoy fights servicing embassies the Far East and Middle East. His whole Squadron in Japan was transferred from Japan to Germany for the Berlin Airlift in 1949. He considered the Berlin Air Lift one of the most important humanitarian services of the United States. In addition to his overseas assignments in the 1950s, he was also stationed at March AFB, California, McGuire AFB, New Jersey. In the 1960s and 70s he was stationed with his family in the England, Offutt AFB, Castle AFB, Frankfurt, Germany (where he was promoted to full Colonel), and Heidelberg, Germany, at that time he also received his MBA from Boston University. His last assignment was at the Air Force Accounting Center in Denver, Colorado where he retired from the Unites States Air Force in 1974 after surviving a heart attack. He was advised to move to a lower altitude so the family moved to Modesto, California where he continued to recover from a heart attack. After his recovery he worked as the Business Manager for the elementary schools and high school in Turlock, California. After ten years he retired again and served a mission for the Church at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City for 18 months. He found this very rewarding and later continued his service at the BYU Family History Library for 10 years.



He and Pauline moved to Springville, Utah in 2001 and have since enjoyed traveling and have visited many exotic places including the Antarctic, Swalberg, and the Amazon.



He is survived by his wife, Pauline, and three sons, James Jr. (Gail) Jeffrey (Linda) and Andrew (Carol), fifteen grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.



Funeral services will be held Tuesday, June 14, 2011 at 11 a.m. in the LDS Chapel at 900 South 1480 East, Springville, Utah. Friends may call on Monday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Wheeler Mortuary, 211 E 200 S, Springville or Tuesday, one hour prior to the services at the church. Interment will be in the Evergreen Cemetery where a military service will be given by the Springville American Legion.



In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Heart Association or the American Lung Association.