James Robert Boydston died peacefully surrounded by family.

Jim was born in and grew up in Dallas, Oregon. He excelled in school and in extra-curricular activities, graduating from high school in 1941. When Pearl Harbor was bombed, his college education plan was interrupted so he could join the United States Army Air Corp. At 101.5 years of age, Jim was one of the last living WWII veterans. He vividly remembered being stationed in Northern England and stepping out of his quarters only to look overhead at the sight of hundreds of bombers and fighter planes streaking across the sky toward Germany. Many of his war memories resonated with him his entire life.

After the war, Jim took advantage of the GI Bill and completed his Engineering Degree at Oregon State University (Go Beavs!) and took a job with State of Oregon DEQ. The State of Oregon selected Jim for a Federal Grant to extend his education anywhere he wanted; he chose to attend Harvard University. When Jim told his wife, Sylvia, they needed to move to the Boston area, she packed the three kids (at that time there were only three) into the Ford Station wagon to travel across the country. Two of three kids rode on mattresses laid across the folded-down back seat. Always an engineer, Jim fashioned a plywood base to support another small mattress between the two front seats for the seven-month-old to sleep on. Once settled in Boston, the federal grant allowed Jim to support his family while earning a Master’s Degree in Environmental Engineering, finishing first in his class.

Jim later worked in Portland, Oregon, as an engineer with Stevens and Thompson Engineers. One interesting project with that firm was Jim’s assignment as Chief Designer of the Anchorage Alaska Water Treatment Plant. Jim’s career path eventually took him and the family back down the Willamette Valley to Corvallis. Jim’s previous employer at the State worked for the Federal Government and hired Jim to work for the Government facilitating the clean-up of the waters of Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, California, and Idaho. In Hawaii, one project consisted of cleaning sugar cane water-waste that was polluting Hawaiian beaches. In California, Jim was involved in monitoring the water-waste from ships that was being directly discharged into San Diego Bay. In Idaho, Jim’s project was to fund the treatment of potato peelings without polluting the local waterways. Clean water and air were vital causes for Jim his entire life.

Jim was devoted to protecting the environment, and he was also devoted to his family. Jim and Sylvia raised their children to be environmentally-minded and good citizens. Jim made it a priority to take his family on many recreational outings…from skiing in Idaho to snorkeling in Hawaii to golfing in Palm Springs. He and Sylvia instilled a love for family, for nature, and for travel.

Jim’s wife, Sylvia, preceded him in death in 2008. They had been married for 62 years. His eldest daughter, Jackie, preceded them both in death in 2000. Jim is survived by his other children: John Boydston and his wife, Suzette; Jerry Boydston and his wife, Mary Lou; Jim Boydston and his wife, Carrie; Jill Boydston and her husband, Brian. Jim is also survived by eight grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren. He will be remembered by his family and friends for his active storytelling, his willingness to do the right thing, his respect for the natural world, his infectious sense of humor, and the great love he had for all of us.

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