JAMES 'JIM' CLYDE HILL

Funeral liturgy will be held for James Clyde “Jim” Hill, 75, at 10:00 A.M. Monday, April 8, 2024 at the Saint James Catholic Church in Douglas, Worming with Father Lucas Kazimiro Simango as the Celebrant and Connie Hill as the eulogist.  Interment will be in the Douglas Park Cemetery.

A visitation for family and friends will be at the at the funeral home on Sunday, April 7, 2024 from 5:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.

Jim died Tuesday, April 2, 2024 at the Central Wyoming Hospice Home in Casper, Wyoming.

Jim was born on Sunday, October 31, 1948 in Lusk, Wyoming the son of Clyde Sanford and Catherine Harriet (Helmes) Hill.  He and his folks lived on a small farm near Lusk until 1951 when they moved into Manville, Wyoming.  In 1952 they moved to a farm ten miles west of Douglas.  Jim started 1st grade at Pleasant Valley School near Natural Bridge and then attended 2nd thru 4th grades in Douglas.  In the fall of 1959, the family moved to Harrison, Nebraska and opened the Harrison Cash Grocery.  Jim attended 5th grade thru high school in Harrison.  He worked in the store, did cement work for his uncle, delivered newspapers, and mowed lawns until graduating from Sioux County High School in 1967.  After high school Jim went to an LPG school learning to work on furnaces, hot water heaters, and propane carburation.  Upon completion of school, he went to work for his cousins at Pioneer Skelgas in Chadron, Nebraska.  In the spring of 1969, he went to work on a drilling rig near Douglas and lived with his aunt, Gladys Hill, until the fall when he returned to Chadron to go to college.  When college was out for the summer, he returned to Douglas to work in the oilfields and got reacquainted with Betty Jean Hopkins, whom he had known while attending grade school.  They were married that fall on September 19, 1970.  Betty was going to nursing school in Rapid City, South Dakota so they moved to Rapid City until she finished school.  In 1971, Jim took a job pulling mobile homes for a factory near Omaha, Nebraska despite not having any trucking experience.  He did this for a couple of years, along with over-the-road trucking.  They welcomed their first son, Michael, in 1972 and their daughter, Crystal, in 1973.  They moved to Caper, Wyoming in 1974 where Jim went back to oilfield work.  In 1975 they moved to Douglas and their son, Brian, was born in 1976.  In 1977 Jim became the manager of an oilfield service company and their youngest son, Justin, was born in 1979.  The company Jim was working for closed their branch in Douglas in 1983, so Jim and Betty started their own oilfield business and operated it until 1999 when business got slow and Jim went to work in the coal mines.  He worked there until August, 2003 when heart problems forced him to retire.

Jim enjoyed hunting, camping, fishing, riding his horses, and telling stories.

Jim is survived by his sons, Mike (Raenae) Hill and Brian (Amanda) Hill both of Douglas; his daughter, Crystal (Mike) Decker of Rapid City; his grandchildren, Michaela Hill, Kenny Hill, Dominick Firnekas, and Katelyn Hill; his great granddaughter, Everly Hill; and his brother, Bob Hill of Alliance, Nebraska.

Jim was preceded in death by his father, Clyde, on May 15, 1984; mother, Harriet, on June 10, 1999; wife, Betty, on November 18, 2021; son, Justin Clyde Hill on August 18, 2010; brother, Dennis Hill, on February 8, 1987; and granddaughter, Hope Lynn Hill, on November 3, 2009.

In lieu of flowers, memorial to Stella Strong in care of Converse County Bank, P.O. Box 689, Douglas, Wyoming 82633 would be appreciated by the family.

Serving as pallbearers will be Dave Hill, Cody Torgerson, Jesse Hill, Bud Hill, Kevin Taylor, and Kenny Jamerman.

Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Dan Coffee, Bob Hill, Larry Wickersham, Dale Walker, and Steve Schrock.      

The Gorman Funeral Homes-Converse Chapel of Douglas, Wyoming is in charge of the arrangements.

Condolences may be sent to the family at www.gormanfh.com

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