By Blox Content Management

Copyright keenesentinel

James Wallace Flanders was born in Concord on the stroke of midnight. The delivering physician allowed his mother to choose what day would be his birth date, and so it was determined to be March 25, 1941. His parents were Wallace C. Flanders and Leona R. Bosely.

His earliest memories were of growing up on a 500-acre farm in Canterbury. He recounted endless tales of mischief, whether intentional or accidental — the hay truck rolling off the property and down the hill across the road after he had played “driving;” releasing the pig and scaring the female summer boarders; giving an infant a ride behind his bike in her baby buggy using a rope extension; escaping from detention at Surry School via the extra horse his sister brought back; shooting out his stepsister’s television while sighting in his hunting rifle; singing his way out of a poor high school English grade with an original composition …

In high school, Jim started a band called the Keene Teens that performed locally, appeared in a Main Street parade and opened for Johnny Cash at the former Lone Star Ranch in Reed’s Ferry in 1964. He played guitar and sang with another local band as well. High school is when he developed his love of history, especially for the World War II era. He later was contracted to teach it as an advanced elective at Keene Middle School and as a guest lecturer at a regional high school. Jim also coordinated all the 2001 downtown window displays for Keene’s commemoration of the U.S. entering World War II in 1941 and obtained a note from Good Queen Bess to exhibit.

He joined the U.S. Marine Corps for active service, part of it in Intelligence, followed by service in the Reserves. A weather enthusiast, Jim studied sciences at Keene State College after the military. He farmed in Marlborough and Sullivan, with a wide variety of animals in the barn and the house. Some of his favorite memories are working the farm with his girls and wandering it on horseback.

In Sullivan, he served on the planning board in the 1970s, helping to bring to town a new school, a new fire station and a zoning code. He then moved to the Falmouth, Mass., area and to Martha’s Vineyard, where he won a 5K road race with no training after spontaneously accepting a challenge. His occupations included vehicle sales and sales management, as well as substance abuse and mental health counseling. Patients and staff alike appreciated his ability to pinpoint the problem and his straightforward communication approach. After retirement, he operated the former employee shuttle van for PC Connection employees in Keene. On the side, he worked as a private investigator for Estey Associates of Keene.

A fisherman and hunter (he just enjoyed an excuse to roam the woods), he began visiting Keene’s Cheshire County Fish and Game Club as a teen. There, Jim developed deep friendships and, for several years, offered members Saturday lunches at “Jim-Bob’s Gunsmoke Grille.” He also served in officer, board and committee positions there and collected for its USMC Toys for Tots campaign. He was a Patriot Life member of the NRA and a supporter of some of its charitable and education efforts. He also belonged to American Legion Post 4, the USCCA and the former Keene Moose Lodge, where he took his wife dancing Saturday nights. He enjoyed writing stories and produced a weekly outdoor column for the Monadnock Shopper for a time around the 1970s o ’80s. He taught himself the language of the Lakota people and supported one of their schools.

Jim was proud of earning his private pilot’s license. He owned at various times four British vehicles and participated in New England car shows. He took pride in the outdoor maintenance of his home and enjoyed time with his kitties.

Jim married Joanne L. Bourassa of Swanzey, with whom he had three daughters. He wed Vicki E. Duckless of Brattleboro in 1991, adding her daughter to his family. He has eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren from his combined family. In addition to Vicki of Keene and Joanne of Falmouth, also deeply grieving his loss are his daughters: Cherri Fowler and her husband, Rick, of Florida; Tracy Baker and her husband, Michael, and Jodi Josephs and her husband, David, of East Falmouth, Mass.; and Ashley Moody and her husband, Michael, of Keene. His grandchildren include Spencer Grubb of Indiana; Eli Grubb and family of Washington; Kelly McDonnell and family and Phoebe Wells and family of Florida; Lily Barber and husband Matthew and Genevieve Josephs of Massachusetts; and Briana Moody and Logan Moody of Keene. He has a brother-in-law, Allen Duckless, of Putney, Vt.; a father-in-law, Bob Duckless, of Brattleboro; and a nephew, Francis Blanchard, of Alabama.

In addition to his parents, Jim was predeceased by his sister, Carolyn Blanchard, and his nephew, James Blanchard, of Alabama.

Jim passed away on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025.

Calling hours will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Cheshire Family Funeral Chapel, 44 Maple Ave., Keene, with a service to begin at 11:30 a.m., immediately followed by a burial with military honors at Monadnock View Cemetery, 451 Park Ave., Keene.

Those who wish may make contributions in his memory to Cheshire County Shooting Sports Education Foundation (CCSSEF), a 501(c)3 organization, on Ferry Brook Road, with a mailing address of P.O. Box 233, Keene NH 03431-0233.

Services are under the care of Cheshire Family Funeral Home, Chapel and Crematories (www.cheshirefamilyfh.com).