James Herz

Jim Herz, 70, of Missoula, passed away on Thurs. July 20, 2017 at Regency at Northpointe in Spokane, WA of natural causes.
He was born on Aug. 15, 1946 in Glen Ullin, ND to John and Emma Herz. As a young man he was raised on a rural farm with 5 brothers and 2 sisters.
Leaving the farm behind he and the love of his life, Barbara Rey, moved to Missoula where they were married and began to raise their family.
Beginning his working career at Horner Waldorf Mill, followed by a produce delivery job at Pacific Fruit Produce. Finishing his working career with Missoula Cartage Co., where he delivered wood products to the Smurfit-Stone Pulp Mill for 25 years. With over a million miles of accident free driving, he was forced to retire due to a serious work related accident. The accident led to the most difficult job of all, recovering from quadriplegia for the past 16 and half years.
A devout Catholic, Jim never lost faith in his religious beliefs, even after the loss of his daughter Jaime, wife Barbara and his devastating accident. His family worked with him tirelessly after his accident to rehab him back to health as best as possible. With his son Randy, by his side throughout the past 16 and a half years, making sure he remained in good health and spirits.
The highlights in Jim’s life were; spending time with family most of all, along with going to the lake with family and friends and church. He was an occasional soccer coach, enjoyed square dancing, playing cards, gardening, and was an usher at St. Francis Xavier and a member of the Knights of Columbus.
Jim was preceded in death by, brother Clarence Herz; father John Herz; daughter Jaime; wife Barbara and mother Emma. Survivors include his sons, Randy (Tina) Herz, Casey and Corey Herz; grandchildren Austin and Taylor Herz; siblings Betty (Duane) DeLaBarr of Glen Ullin; Bob of Glen Ullin; Gary of Bismarck, ND; John of Grand Forks, ND; Loretta (Chuck) Gerving of Glen Ullin and Eddie of Sommerset, SD.
Visitation will be on Thursday, July 27th from 4-6pm followed by a short vigil at Garden City Funeral Home starting at 6pm.
Funeral services will be Friday, July 28th at 10:30 a.m. at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, followed by a luncheon at Reidy Hall (church basement) Burial will follow at St. Mary’s Cemetery.