Obituary for James N. "Jim" Comes
Jim Comes, age 79 of Waverly, SD passed away Monday, May 23, 2022.
Funeral services will be at 10:30 am Saturday, May 28, 2022, (with a rosary prior) at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Kranzburg, SD. Father Christopher Hughes will be the celebrant with Father Denis Meier; and Shelly Turbak as lector. Eileen Lindner will be the organist with LeRoy Mack as cantor.
Visitation will be 4-7 pm, with a scripture service and time of sharing at 7 pm, Friday, May 27, 2022, at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Kranzburg.
Interment will be at St. Joseph Cemetery in Waverly.
Honorary pallbearers will be his granddaughters: Diana Comes, Jordan and Madison Hulscher, Erin and Kylie Comes, Olivia, Katharine and Elizabeth Comes.
Pallbearers will be his grandsons: Mark and John Comes, Austin Hulscher, Ethan, Connor, and Noah Comes, Nicholas and Andrew Comes.
In lieu of flowers, memorial designations may be directed to Codington County Cares, 818 S. Broadway, Watertown, SD 57201.
Faith, family, farming, and friends: These were the things that mattered the most to Jim Comes.
James Nickolas was born to William and Helen on December 6, 1942, the second child of five; he grew up on a farm outside of Waverly. This would be where he would raise his own family and live until the end of his life.
He attended Waverly High School and graduated in 1961. Jim married his high-school sweetheart, Joyce Stark on November 28, 1964. They had a short honeymoon phase living in Watertown while he worked at Chickasha mobile home manufacturing then moved to Waverly until they moved onto the family farm in 1974. There they raised their four children and eventually built a new house and remained there into ‘retirement’. While he had a few jobs prior to full-time farming, he was clearly born to farm. He farmed and had a dairy operation called Comes Brothers with Billy Comes and later, his son Brian. In recent years as his active role on the farm became less, his advice and wisdom for how they should be doing things remained strong.
No one loved their community more than Jim. He served on several boards over his lifetime. He was the embodiment of friendship and what it meant to be a good neighbor. He had an open door for everyone and a standing invitation to share a ‘bump’ with anyone who stopped by.
Jim earned the nickname Energizer Bunny from Joyce because he always seemed to have more energy than anyone around him. Sitting idle was not for him. He worked hard and played hard, but work always had to be done first. His children and grandkids remember well his many words of wisdom, usually, one-liners meant to encourage hard work. He had a playful spirit and enjoyed pranking friends on his many trips and adventures with them.
Some of his favorite pastimes when not sitting in a tractor were polka dances with Joyce, Tractor Tuesday at the Waverly Steakhouse, & trying his luck at the casino. He may be single-handedly responsible for keeping the Waverly Steakhouse open. Their shared love of polka festivals and dancing lead to some of their closest friendships and greatest memories together.
Jim faithfully cared for his mother who lived to be 101 and resided just up the driveway on the family farm. He served as an example to his own children of what it meant to take care of what matters most. This spirit was evident in the number of friends and family that took the time to come and visit him in the final days of his life.
He will be forever remembered as a man of quiet faithfulness and loyalty to the community he was part of. Jim courageously and without complaint fought cancer for five years. He was surrounded by family and friends in his final moments here on earth.
Jim is survived by his wife, Joyce Comes of Waverly; his children, Darrin Comes of Farmington, MN, Laurie (Larry) Hulscher of Wilmot, SD, Brian (Lisa) Comes of Waverly, SD and Chad (Heidi) Comes of Madison, SD; 16 grandchildren; one great-grandchild; his brothers, Billy (Carol) Comes of Waverly, SD, Tom (Patty) Comes of Sioux Falls, SD and Doug Comes of Waverly, SD; and his brother-in-law, Melvin Lantgen of Watertown, SD.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Judy Lantgen; sister-in-law, Donna Comes; and grandson, Cooper Hulscher.
Funeral services will be at 10:30 am Saturday, May 28, 2022, (with a rosary prior) at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Kranzburg, SD. Father Christopher Hughes will be the celebrant with Father Denis Meier; and Shelly Turbak as lector. Eileen Lindner will be the organist with LeRoy Mack as cantor.
Visitation will be 4-7 pm, with a scripture service and time of sharing at 7 pm, Friday, May 27, 2022, at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Kranzburg.
Interment will be at St. Joseph Cemetery in Waverly.
Honorary pallbearers will be his granddaughters: Diana Comes, Jordan and Madison Hulscher, Erin and Kylie Comes, Olivia, Katharine and Elizabeth Comes.
Pallbearers will be his grandsons: Mark and John Comes, Austin Hulscher, Ethan, Connor, and Noah Comes, Nicholas and Andrew Comes.
In lieu of flowers, memorial designations may be directed to Codington County Cares, 818 S. Broadway, Watertown, SD 57201.
Faith, family, farming, and friends: These were the things that mattered the most to Jim Comes.
James Nickolas was born to William and Helen on December 6, 1942, the second child of five; he grew up on a farm outside of Waverly. This would be where he would raise his own family and live until the end of his life.
He attended Waverly High School and graduated in 1961. Jim married his high-school sweetheart, Joyce Stark on November 28, 1964. They had a short honeymoon phase living in Watertown while he worked at Chickasha mobile home manufacturing then moved to Waverly until they moved onto the family farm in 1974. There they raised their four children and eventually built a new house and remained there into ‘retirement’. While he had a few jobs prior to full-time farming, he was clearly born to farm. He farmed and had a dairy operation called Comes Brothers with Billy Comes and later, his son Brian. In recent years as his active role on the farm became less, his advice and wisdom for how they should be doing things remained strong.
No one loved their community more than Jim. He served on several boards over his lifetime. He was the embodiment of friendship and what it meant to be a good neighbor. He had an open door for everyone and a standing invitation to share a ‘bump’ with anyone who stopped by.
Jim earned the nickname Energizer Bunny from Joyce because he always seemed to have more energy than anyone around him. Sitting idle was not for him. He worked hard and played hard, but work always had to be done first. His children and grandkids remember well his many words of wisdom, usually, one-liners meant to encourage hard work. He had a playful spirit and enjoyed pranking friends on his many trips and adventures with them.
Some of his favorite pastimes when not sitting in a tractor were polka dances with Joyce, Tractor Tuesday at the Waverly Steakhouse, & trying his luck at the casino. He may be single-handedly responsible for keeping the Waverly Steakhouse open. Their shared love of polka festivals and dancing lead to some of their closest friendships and greatest memories together.
Jim faithfully cared for his mother who lived to be 101 and resided just up the driveway on the family farm. He served as an example to his own children of what it meant to take care of what matters most. This spirit was evident in the number of friends and family that took the time to come and visit him in the final days of his life.
He will be forever remembered as a man of quiet faithfulness and loyalty to the community he was part of. Jim courageously and without complaint fought cancer for five years. He was surrounded by family and friends in his final moments here on earth.
Jim is survived by his wife, Joyce Comes of Waverly; his children, Darrin Comes of Farmington, MN, Laurie (Larry) Hulscher of Wilmot, SD, Brian (Lisa) Comes of Waverly, SD and Chad (Heidi) Comes of Madison, SD; 16 grandchildren; one great-grandchild; his brothers, Billy (Carol) Comes of Waverly, SD, Tom (Patty) Comes of Sioux Falls, SD and Doug Comes of Waverly, SD; and his brother-in-law, Melvin Lantgen of Watertown, SD.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Judy Lantgen; sister-in-law, Donna Comes; and grandson, Cooper Hulscher.