James D. North, 69, of Fort Wayne, died Thursday April 30, 2026. Jim was born in Fort Wayne on August 30, 1956, the son of the late John and Barbara (Hoock) North. He graduated from Northside High School with the Class of 1974 and continued his studies, earning a Master’s degree from Indiana Wesleyan University. Jim married Laura (Rehm) North on August 23, 1980, and she survives, along with their children, Matthew (Christina) North and Marci (Drew) Minier, both of Fort Wayne, and Miles (Shannon) North of Indianapolis; grandchildren, Aubrey North and Thomas North, both of Indianapolis, and Cooper Diem, Chloe North and Miriam Minier, all of Fort Wayne; sisters, Kathy Didion and Cherry Gallogly, both of Fort Wayne, and Teresa (Chaz) Middleton of Marathon FL; brothers, Tim North and Tom North, both of Dallas TX, and brother-in-law, Steve Reuille of Fort Wayne. In addition to his parents, Jim was also preceded in death by a sister, Cindy Reuille.

Jim started his career at GE Aircraft in Fort Wayne. He then moved to southern Indiana to work at GE Motors in Owensboro Kentucky. In his time down south he was the assistant wrestling coach at South Spencer High School. He then returned to Fort Wayne working at Zimmer in Warsaw, and Elkhart Brass in Elkhart. Jim was the President and founder of GCMI, LLC and had mastered the art of Global Procurement making strong friendships with clients and customers in China and Tiawan.

Jim had always been a fierce competitor. He started boxing right out of high school and was a golden glove champion. He loved to play in every tournament, card game, and cruise challenge. Jim was also fearless, wrestling a live black bear, bungee jumping, and sky diving. His time with the Toastmasters Club, gave him a love of public speaking, storytelling and joking with everyone. His love of life was apparent to everyone he met. He never met a stranger and was the life of the party. His audacious suits would make him stand out in every crowd. He was the guy you could count on to prepare games for every event, shovel your driveway, or just show up if you needed someone to talk to. Jim was a long-time member at the Foster Park Golf Course, where he loved to play with his friends, sons, grandchildren, and great nephews. He looked forward to competing in the Knights of Columbus golf outing with his sons and son-in-law, defending their championship, and selecting their crazy golf shirts.

Jim enjoyed life with his wife Laura and family. They enjoyed going on cruises, playing cards, hosting pool parties, going to movies, concerts and just being with friends and family. Jim and Laura were their grandkids’ biggest supporters. Jim was the anchor of his family and an outstanding husband, brother, father, grandfather, uncle, and great uncle. The lives he touched and helped were endless and everyone who knew him will miss him dearly.

Jim’s family and friends will Celebrate his Life at 4:00pm Friday May 8, 2026 at Divine Mercy Funeral Home, 3500 Lake Ave. Visitation is from 1-4pm Friday at the funeral home. The family requests guests to wear colorful attire to remember Jim’s colorful life. The family’s preferred memorials in lieu of flowers are Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Indiana, online at https://bbbsnei.org or by mail at 1005 W. Rudisill Blvd, Fort Wayne, IN 46807; or to the St. Aloysius Knights of Columbus, by mail at 14623 Bluffton Rd, Yoder, IN 46798. To share a remembrance of Jim or to offer condolences to his family, please visit DivineMercyFuneralHome.com.

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