James Thomas Crawford Sr. (Jim), 74, of McLouth, KS passed away Wednesday, June 22, 2022 at the Osage Nursing Center in Osage City, KS. He was born on July 4 ^th , 1947 in Winchester, KS to Tom and Alma (Smith) Crawford of Valley Falls.  Jim graduated from Valley Falls HS in 1964 and then attended Kansas State Teachers College (ESU) where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration.  He was a member of the KSTC Track and Field team where he threw the discus.  Jim met and married Beverly Ann Butts in Oxford, KS while attending KSTC 1968.  They had two children Carolyn Kay Lang (Mike) of Perry, KS and James Thomas Crawford Jr. "J.T." (Amy) of Reading, KS. In 1990, Jim married Janet "Jan" Scherer of Kansas City, KS in McLouth, KS. She survives of the home.   Jim worked for the Internal Revenue Service, the Kansas Fish and Game and volunteered at many charitable organizations.

Jim had many talents and interests.  As a lifelong sports enthusiast, he could be seen throwing discus, kicking field goals, shooting baskets and hitting baseballs in his free time. Jim competed in the discus for 25 years in track meets and even qualified to throw in the Masters Olympics in Florida.   Jim went on to coach local throwers in discus and also helped coached his children's baseball and softball teams.  Jim's love for sports extended into writing. He wrote and illustrated a football rules book and also wrote poetry. His poem "The Toe" (about a kicker) resides in the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio and "Discobolus" (Greek for Discus Thrower) is in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in New York City. Jim's greatest literary work was "1955" a long story poem about his favorite team, the Brooklyn Dodgers, journey to win their first World Series against their crosstown rivals; the NY Yankees.  "1955" was accepted in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York and he received a lifetime membership. A short documentary film called "1955: Seven Days in Fall" which Jim narrated, was based on his poem.  The film received some awards and aired multiple times on ESPN and Public Television.

Jim's art wasn't limited to just drawing and writing.  He built scale models of historic subjects from wood. Detailed wagons, airplanes, ships and other items were meticulously crafted and given to his son to use as teaching tools in his history classes.  Jim was an accomplished guitarist and had a very eclectic taste in music. His first love was 1960's surf instrumentals but dabbled in classical, folk and rock guitar.

Jim loved being in the outdoors. He hunted upland game birds and waterfowl.  He enjoyed fishing with his children and grandchildren (Claire, Reid and Greta) and was always in search of the big catfish.  He hunted morel mushrooms every spring and took his secret spots to the grave.

Jim Crawford loved life and lived it to its fullest. He enjoyed telling jokes and recalling stories about the past. He dearly loved his family and friends. He is survived by his wife, children and sisters Judie Moore (Bob) and Joan Crawford.  He was a truly unique, talented individual and will be greatly missed.

The family will greet friends from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 29, 2022 at the Mercer Funeral Home in Valley Falls, KS. A private family burial will follow at the Valley Falls Cemetery. Jim will lie in state Tuesday, June 28, 2022 from 12:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to the James T. Crawford Sr. Memorial Fund to be designated to the Performance Sports Track and Field Youth Throwing Academy in Reading, KS. c/o Mercer Funeral Home, P.O. Box 6, Valley Falls, Kansas 66088.