James A. Power, Jr.

James A. Power, Jr., 87, Topeka passed away Thursday, November 20, 2014. He was born December 28, 1926 in Springfield, Massachusetts, the son of James and Bettina Power.

Jim grew up in Tarrytown, New York and learned to love Swing and Big Band Era music. The war changed things for Jim; he graduated from high school in three years so that he could join the Army. V-J day came while he was mid-Pacific in route to Japan. His time in the service was in occupied Japan.

After his time in the service his family had relocated to Kansas City and he joined them there. He took advantage of the GI bill and enrolled at the University of Kansas in the School of Engineering and became a lifelong Jayhawk. He graduated with a Civil Engineer degree and began a career at Black and Veitch on the Plaza in Kansas City.

On a blind date he met the love of his life, Audrey Lyon. He proposed and they were married on December 23, 1950. The couple took up residence in Kansas City but a better opportunity came along when one of his former KU professors recruited him and Jim took a job with the State of Iowa at the Iowa Natural Resources Board. Jim and Audrey moved to Des Moines, Iowa and built their first home. Their family grew, Jane was born in 1955 and Carol in 1957. Once again, his former professor moved to Kansas and recruited Jim to come and work at the Kansas Water Resources Board. Times changed and Jim moved with the changes joined the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. There he worked with the EPA on a national level, and he supported the State of Kansas water, air and land policies. Jim retired in February of 1991 as the Director of Environment for the State of Kansas.

Jim was an active community member and offered support in many ways to many organizations. He was a patron of the Arts, avid sports fan and a voracious reader! He loved to travel and there was never a time that he stopped learning. He loved to play the game of Bridge. He was an excellent craftsman and many people have benefited from his wood works. He was a member of First Congregational Church in Topeka and supported the church in many ways, including, White Memorial Camp on Council Grove reservoir. He also was a long time member Kiwanis and the Girl Scouts. He volunteered at the Kansas State Historical Society. As a patron of the Arts he supported the Topeka Symphony, the Sunflower Music Festival and Topeka Civic Theatre. His favorite sports teams were the KU Jayhawks and the Topeka Road Runners.

Jim is survived by his wife, Audrey; two daughters, Jane (Mark) Dettmann, Topeka and Carol (Brook) Becker, Minden, Iowa; two grandsons, Jay (Janae) Lucero and Andrew Lucero all of Fort Worth, Texas; two great-grandchildren, Jocelyn and Korbyn Lucero and two siblings, Barbara (Ken) Reed, Boulder Creek, California and Bruce Power, Los Gatos, California.

Memorial services will be 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, November 25 at First Congregational Church. Memorial contributions may be made to First Congregational Church, 1701 SW Collins Avenue, Topeka, Kansas 66604.

Penwell-Gabel Mid-Town Chapel is assisting the family.

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