James K. McKinzie

December 13, 1951 - November 13, 2022

James Kevin McKinzie, 70, passed away peacefully at the Indiana Masonic Home in Franklin, Indiana, on Sunday, November 13, 2022.  He was born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on December 13, 1951, to the late James Franklin McKinzie and Barbara Jean (Vice) McKinzie.           

He was a 1970 graduate of North Salem High School and attended Edison Community College in Fort. Myers Florida. James had worked as a self-employed painter for many years. He really enjoyed fishing and being outdoors. He was also very musically talented and was known for playing the drums and the harmonica, among other abilities. In his youth, he was a member of North Salem Christian Church.

In the early 1970s, James was in the United States Navy, stationed in Jacksonville, Florida. He also spent several years residing in Fort Myers Beach, Florida before moving back to Indiana. In 1990, he moved to Brookings, Oregon where he lived the last 25 years of his life before returning to Indiana for care during the end of his journey.  

Survivors include children, Amanda Jo (Giss) Sawyer of Plainfield, Indiana and Jamie Lee Neal of Clayton, Indiana; grandchildren, Ava Gabbard, Ian Gabbard, Isaac Gabbard, KinzLee Neal, Giss V. Sawyer, and soon a new granddaughter as well; step grandchildren, Landyn Sawyer and Layla Sawyer; and sisters, Christi (Myron) Clark and Vicki Wright of Danville, Indiana.

 Visitation is planned from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 19, 2022, at Porter and Hunt Funeral Home & Crematory, 6 South California Street, in North Salem, Indiana. Funeral services will follow at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday at the funeral home. Interment with military rites will take place at Fairview Cemetery in North Salem.