James Legacie

James H. "Jim" Legacie, age 91, of Edmore, ND, passed away April 1, 2012 at his home in Edmore, ND.

James Henry Legacie was born March 11, 1921 in Lawton Twp., Ramsey Co., to James M. and Josephine (Taunt) Legacie. He attended school in Lawton. During World War II Jim served his country in the United States Army. He was a member of Company H, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 82nd Airborne, which was known as "Those Devils in Baggy Pants" by the opposing forces. He saw a lot of action in the European theatre and received many decorations including a purple heart. After World War II, Jim returned to Lawton to help on the family farm. On November 3, 1948 he married Lorraine Mygland in Lakota. In 1952 he went to Alaska where he worked construction building a military base. While in Alaska he learned to operate heavy equipment. When he returned to North Dakota Jim operated heavy equipment in road construction. He worked for Meyer Construction in Dickinson until his retirement in 1986. Jim and Lorraine lived in Williston, Dickinson, and Taylor before returning to Edmore in January of 2000. He enjoyed gardening and growing flowers and vegetables, reading, working crossword puzzles, and golfing. Jim was a lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. In April 2009, Jim traveled to Washington DC on the World War II Honor Flight to visit the World War II Memorial.

Jim is survived by 5 daughters, Carmen (Roger) Nygaard of Edmore, Carole Helle of Edmore, Brenda Green of Bloomfield , New Mexico , Cheryl (Dan) Paukert of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Becky ( Wayne ) Hanson of Springfield, Missouri; 12 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. Also surviving is a sister-in-law, Dottie Legacie of Washington.

Jim is the last surviving member of his family. He was preceded in death by his wife Lorraine on April 19, 2010; his parents; brothers, Basil, Cecil, Herbert, Ernest, and David; sisters, Lucinda, Rachel, Ethel, Laura, an infant sister Mary; and son-in-law, Tom Green.

The Funeral Service will be held at the Lawton Lutheran Church, Lawton, ND, on Saturday, April 7, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. Officiating will be Reverend Jodi Myrvik. The organist will be Margaret Swanson and the soloist will be Edval Helle. Burial will be at the Lawton Cemetery in the Legacie family plot. The casketbearers are Jimmie Legacie, Bud Legacie, Todd Nygaard, Tim Nygaard, Troy Helle, and Darcy Podoll. Visitation will be held at the church on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until the time of service.