Mills, William J. "Jim" Obituary

Mills, William J. "Jim" attended Corvallis High School in Corvallis, OR. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about Mills, William J. "jim".

Graduation Year	Class of 1962
Date of Passing	Feb 03, 2016
About	Jim Mills passed away of natural causes at the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center on February 3, 2016. He was born to William W. Mills and Anne Reese Mills in Red Wing, Minnesota on January 22, 1942. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota while his father completed graduate school at the University of Minnesota. Jim was joined 18 months later by his sister, Carolyn "Cammie." In 1956, the family moved in their 1949 Chevrolet to Corvallis where is father took a job at OSU as a Doctor of Psychology. Jim and Cammie attended Harding Grade School, Highland Middle School and Corvallis High School. He graduated from CHS in 1962. Immediately following high school graduation, Jim joined the US navy. He was stationed in Dugway, Utah, and then as a Project Shad Tech-Staff on the USS Granville S. Hall in the Pacific Ocean. When on shore, he was in Pearl harbor, Hawaii where he learned to ride and love motorcycles. Following his discharge from the Navy in 1964, he returned to Corvallis. He attended OSU part time, achieving sophomore level status. Over the next nine years, he held a variety of employment positions including several employers: Good Samaritan Hospital, Brand S Plywood Co., R3 Engraving Co and CH2M Hill. From 1969-73 he served as the admin assistant for the Benton County Board of Commissioners. Jim took flying lessons on the GI Bill and earned his pilot's license. Flying was his first and lasting passion. In 1967, Jim married Nancy Maxwell of Philomath. They later divorced. On July 28, 1987, Jim married Charlotte Ann (Batey) Allen on the Benton County Courthouse lawn. Their marriage was blessed by the arrival of their son, James Reese Mills, on March 18, 1989. Their family included Charlotte's adult two sons from a previous marriage, Tad and Adam Allen. Jim was an avid Harley-Davidson fan and owned several Harleys over his lifetime. Jim is survived by his wife of 28-1/2 years, Charlotte: son James, Eugene; stepsons Tad (Carol) and Adam Allen (Deri); guardian niece Helen Allen Iliff; and step grandchildren Josh and Trenton Allen, and Madeline Allen. Also surviving are his sister, Carolyn "Cammie" Bella; husband David Bella; and nephews Seve and John Bella and David O'Shaughnessy. An informal gathering of family and friends will take place later.