Obituary
James J Kunkel went home to be with
his Lord and Savior on January 7, 2026, at the age of 86 with his family next
to him. He was born to Oliver and Daisy
Kunkel on December 29, 1939, in San Jose, California. James was the fourth of five children in the
family. His family moved around quite a
bit before settling down in the small town of San Martin, California.
James was raised in church which
would guide his life from a very young age.
He went on to attend Sharon Bible & High School and continued to get
his ministerial license and become a pastor.
At the age of 17, James was attending a special church service when he
met Brenda Culp, and he immediately knew there was something special about
her. They would go on to get married on
October 18, 1958. James and Brenda have
four daughters. In 1971, the family relocated to Oregon when James became
pastor of a small church.
James eventually stopped actively
pastoring full-time and started his own businesses. He owned multiple grocery
and convenience stores. Later, he sold those stores to start his own food
distribution business, Jim’s Big Apple Distributing, also known as Big Jim
sandwiches located in Boring, Oregon. This business serviced convenience
stores, providing them with a variety of sandwiches, which he and his family
made in their own commercial kitchen. He
went on to add a large variety of snack foods.
James owned and ran this business for over thirty years before retiring
with his beautiful bride.
James was known by many as “Big
Jim”. The last years of his life he wanted to accomplish two things. The first
was to live to the age of 86 and the second was to finish his autobiography. On
his 86th birthday, he was handed the editors proof of his book
titled “My Journey” written by James “Big Jim” Kunkel. He was extremely proud
to hold that in his hand.
James is survived by his daughters
Kellie Davidson (husband Rick), Debra Badger, Tamra Wood (husband Pat),
Jacqueline Licht (husband Dave), grandchildren Joshua Jacobs, Marissa Cooper
(husband Chris and great-granddaughter Emma), Samantha Porth (husband Jeremy
and great-grandsons Maddox and Lucas), Jessica Moore (husband Zachary), Payton
Ryan, his brother David Kunkel and many nieces and nephews that he loved as his
own in addition to great-nieces and nephews. James joins in heaven his wife
Brenda Kunkel, his parents Oliver and Daisy Kunkel, his brother Howard Kunkel
(wife Jean), his sisters Melba Risley (husband Truman), sister Dean Pitts
(husband Dorman), brother-in-law Bill Culp, niece Linda Pitts, niece Kim Cox and his best friend Gene
Jackson.
His funeral will be held at 11:00am
on January 22, 2026, at Sandy Funeral Home in Sandy, Oregon.