This is the story of James (Jim) David Isaman. Jim was a wonderful man that was loved, is missed, and will always be cherished. Our “Grpa,” as he liked to be called by his grandchildren, and “Hubby,” as his wife called him, was an amazing husband, dad, and son, and had the keen ability to lighten any mood with a quirky joke.
Jim’s journey began in Olean, New York on September 16, 1938, the oldest of 7 children to Fred and Elaine Isaman. When Jim was young their family moved all around New York State, living in Franklinville Machias, and Hinsdale. Jim spent most of his childhood on a family farm in Hinsdale, where he went to school, played football and made life long friends. When Jim wasn’t in school or helping on the farm, you might have found him working at the local Crosby Dairy Ice Cream Shop helping to earn extra money for his family. The Isaman family was well respected in the town of Hinsdale, and the street they lived on was soon named, “Isaman Road”, and remains as such to this day.
Straight after graduating from high school with honors, Jim joined the United States Air Force, in September of 1956, in spite of his mother’s efforts to have him pursue a football career and a college degree. Jim was a proud patriot and spent 4 years serving in the United States Air Force during the Korean conflict until his Honorable discharge in 1961. When he was 21 years old, Jim met the love of his life, Ms. Roselain Murphy, who was 17 at the time. They met through Roselain’s brother, Edward, who was stationed at Paine Field in the Air Force alongside Jim. Jim and Roselain had a whirlwind romance and were married in a Lutheran church in Seattle in July of 1959. He spent years after working as an entrepreneur and in a management position for the grocery industry in the greater Seattle area. In 1961, their son, James David Isaman Jr. was born. Six years later, their daughter Roselain Marcea Anderson (Isaman) was brought into the world. The Isaman family lived a happy life together in various neighborhoods of Washington, including Edmonds, Bothell, Mukilteo, and Marysville. Jim was a hard worker in every aspect of his life. He enjoyed spending time with his family, reading, embarking on cross-country road trips, camping, fishing on the lakes of Washington, and a good cup of coffee.
Jim went to be with Jesus on December 12, 2016 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Loved ones that will miss Jim until they meet again are his wife Roselain, two children, James and Rosie; his six grandchildren Alyssa, Ashley, Jordan, Ronnie, Kinslee, and Amanda; his 8 great grandchildren; his sisters, Elaine and Kathy, and brothers Fred, Bill, Tom and Jerry; his nieces and nephews; and the rest of his family and friends. Loved ones that preceded him in death are his parents, Fred and Elaine Isaman.
And so the story goes on until we see our dear Grpa, Dad, and Hubby again. We love and miss you deeply.
The memorial service will be held at Mukilteo Foursquare Church (4424 Chennault Beach Rd Mukilteo, WA 98275) on Saturday January 21, 2017, at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers please send donations to the Alzheimer’s Foundations of America (AFA) at http://www.alzfdn.org/ to help support the advancement of research of this disease.