James A. Gunderson

Jim Gunderson, ‘Buddy’ to his childhood friends and ‘Dad’ to us, passed away this Thursday, September 19th at the age of 87 with his kids in attendance in a peaceful state thanks to the wonderful folks of Serenity Hospice. He bravely fought the Big C for many years and this week he lost the battle.



Dad was born in Winnipeg, Canada on March 8, 1932 to Marguerite O’Connor (Maggie). Shortly after his birth Maggie met Desmond Gunderson (Dez) from Baudette, MN and soon both mother and son traveled to the USA to jump-start the Gunderson clan.  The O’Connor and Tobin clan on the Canadian side of the border played a big part in his early childhood.  Before long the Gunderson family blossomed to include one sister (Dodi) and two brothers (Denny and Wally). Life was hard in northern Minnesota during those Depression days; being a ‘jack of all trades’ and living off the land was essential to survive the times. Dez wore many hats to provide for his family and Buddy being the oldest had to share in all of the nitty-gritty chores to keep bread on the table. The family’s mink farm was the main source of income during Buddy’s early days. Feeding freshly butchered horsemeat to hungry mink his daily task.  Maggie managed a large family garden with the help of Buddy. As Dad tells it, that garden provided a year’s worth of vegetables for the Gunderson’s every year the family lived in MN. Eventually the mink market conditions changed and with it Dez’s occupation. The family property fronting the Rainy River, USA on one side and Canada on the other, made commercial fishing a natural transition for Dez on Lake of the Woods.  Throughout Dez’s life, he would become a logger, firefighter, and welding shop owner with his children working alongside him but a commercial fisherman was where his heart was.



The fishing grounds of Alaska intrigued Dez and Maggie and soon the family was spending king crab and salmon season in Seldovia, Alaska and walleye season in Baudette. Buddy became Dez’s shipmate whatever the boat or water fished. There was no high school in Seldovia so when Buddy was 14-years old Dez and Maggie decided their oldest son needed an education more than they needed a deckhand. On the way to Alaska in his 14th year his parents set him up in an apartment on Whidbey Island, WA to get a HS education while the rest of the family continued to Seldovia. The allotted money they left with him didn’t go very far in those days, so he did what he had to do to make ends meet. Having a strong work ethic from a young age, instead of hanging out at the soda shop with his friends, he chose to use the time as an opportunity to get ahead by taking several part time jobs after school.  He picked brush on the weekends and worked at gas stations during the week. Dad discovered a local farmer had an old Model A Ford in his barn. He approached the farmer one day and offered him $25 for the car.  The farmer turned him down. Dad offered him $25 several times over the course of a couple of years for the car, the man turning him down each time.  Finally, one day when Dad offered him $25, the man accepted! He told us he was the first kid in his class to have his own car but he kept it secret from his family. Dad said the only one who knew was his little Sister Dodi and took her for a spin in it once! Being a young teenager with his own apartment and car you would think would have led to wild times; but he always told us ‘work and surviving’ became his focus…right !!   He made a good HS friend in Don McCay. Dad told us he was a frequent visitor at the McCay family dinner table...thanks Don for helping our Dad. Dad fondly remembers those dinners and spoke warmly of Don’s Mother and how she would always drive him to the Airport after each school year to get on a plane and head up to Alaska to join the rest of the family.



When he became of age Buddy enlisted in the Air Force and did his ‘basic’ at Emendorf AFB, Anchorage in December 1950…brrr! After basic he was stationed at Randolph AFB in San Antonio Texas.   There he met a WAF from Washington State who later became our mother, Shirley Hutton.  “Luckily” he fathered two children, Ken and Bobbie…us.  After the military our Dad worked hard and did everything he could to provide for his family. He was a natural amazing salesman and excelled in many various business sales. To give you an idea of his skill level; he once sold an electric adjustable bed to a man who lived off the grid and had to run a generator for his electricity.  In Tucson, AZ he sold the Mafia Mobster Joe ‘Bananas’ Bonanno his mausoleum crypt.  After 25 years of marriage Shirley and Buddy  ended their marriage. Dad was married several more times over the years, but always remained friends with our Mom right up to the end.





Our Dad worked into his early 80’s more out of love for productive activity than the need for money.  At the age of 81, he became a citizen of the USA after discovering through a drivers’s license renewal process that after working his whole life and serving in the military, he was still a Canadian citizen.  It was one of the proudest moments of his life.





In his last years he created a relaxing lifestyle in Long Beach WA.  His passion was feeding the many inland coastal birds and squirrels in his yard every day who I’m sure will miss his daily feedings. His daily ritual was to go down to the beach and feed the seagulls day old bread. His continued to keep in constant contact with every family member and old friend, something he’d done his entire life, remembering birthdays with cards and phone calls.  He always looked forward to his Sunday breakfasts with his good friend, John. Recently his Grandson Cody made the effort and traveled from China in time to say goodbye, one of Dad’s last wishes.



One thing for sure though, the clams that inhabit Long Beach are happy to see him gone. Dad learned his fishing, clamming and hunting skills from his Dad just like we’ve learned ours from him. With Grandpa Dez gone, it’s easy for us to say that no man in the world can fish or clam better than our Dad. Even in his 80’s he could out clam all of us.  Many a time he’d fill his limit and worked as a spotter for the rest of us despite conditions where visiting clammers could barely find a clam.



All of the original Gunderson clan preceded him to that big place in the sky where people go.  Buddy was a tough one; they don’t make his mold anymore.  We’ll miss you Dad; and the never-ending love you had for us.  Hope there’s a beach in heaven and a stadium full of angels attentively listening to all your continuous stories that we’ve heard over 100 times. We only wish we could have a chance to hear them one more time…



His surviving relatives include his Son Ken Gunderson with wife Becky, Daughter Bobbie Paredes with husband Jim, Grandson Cody Mecham, many cousins, nieces and nephews.