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Obituary: James Alan Winter

November 23, 1945 - October 26, 2020
Posted at 12:35 PM, Nov 04, 2020
and last updated 2020-11-04 14:45:29-05

James Alan Winter was born on November 23, 1945, to Elmer and Veronica Winter in St. Paul, Minnesota. Throughout his life, James went by many names, James, Jim, Son, Brother, Uncle, Santa, Husband, and Dad; but by far, his favorite name to go by was Papa.

He graduated from Newman High School in Mason City, Iowa and afterwards he attended X-Ray Tech School. Papa never lost the ability to recite all 206 bones in the body. This profession as an X-Ray Tech would lead him to meet the love of his life in 1965. Katharine “Nana” Keohen was riding her horse and was bucked off requiring her to need an X-Ray. At the time, Nana was in nursing school and Papa was in school to be an X-Ray Tech. Lucky for Papa, he was fortunate enough to take this X-Ray for his future wife…“and the rest was history.” They were married on November 12, 1966.

Afterwards, they moved to Montana where they began their family. The love for his family was unlike any other. In 1969, Papa and Nana welcomed their son, Jeff, into the world and in 1971, their daughter, Julie, was born.

Papa enjoyed many activities. He loved to hunt squirrels, pheasants, gophers, and big game. He loved to ride horses and help out with branding cattle. While Papa was tough enough to trudge through the tough Montana winters to help with cattle or track down a nice buck; he was also gentle enough to hold a paintbrush and transform a canvas into beautiful Montana scenery. He enjoyed painting skylines, fenceposts, and pheasants. His artwork will be treasured by his family for generations to come.

To read the complete obituary and share condolences, visit the Schnider Funeral Home website.