Some knew Jim Yost as a local business owner. Others were awed by the way he conquered long distance races. Some appreciated his support of the Mahomet Area Youth Club, Champaign West Rotary and the Presence Covenant Medical Center. And others loved to listen to him talk about the events of World War II.
But for those who knew Jim Yost, he was more than a man who just worked and volunteered in the community. Those who knew Jim saw how he grabbed each day with zest. They also saw a man who longed to share what he knew and loved with those around him.
Yost, co-owner of Owens Funeral Home in Champaign and Blair-Owens Funeral Home in Mahomet, died of blunt force injuries while skydiving in Oklahoma Tuesday. The 69-year old was training for a demonstration jump to honor World War II paratroopers.
Yost joined the Army ROTC while attending Murray State University on a cross country and track scholarship. He went on to serve with the 1st Infantry Division, 82nd Airborne Division in Vietnam and the 10th Special Forces Group.
As part of the historical 82nd Airborne Division, Yost fell in love with the historical stories surrounding World War II. Yost and his son, Jay, attended the 60th-anniversary commemoration of D-Day in Normandy with his restored World War II Jeep in 2004. As a World War II re-enactment paratrooper, Yost attended the 70th anniversary commemoration of D-Day in June.
“He was a patriot,” Jim Alumbaugh said. “He believed in the United States, understood the sacrifices it took to have the freedoms that we have. And his knowledge of U.S. military history and U.S. history in general was phenomenal. He could present that information in a way that made it very, very interesting.”
Alumbaugh, who met Jim at a Champaign West Rotary meeting, grew to know him better as he watched his close friend, Jay interact with his father. Jay became passionate about the military through his service in the Army, but also shared a love for history, cars, France and cycling with Jim.
When Jim hurt his knee after many years of pushing his body through its limits by running in marathons, ultra-marathons and skydiving, he decided to join Jay by training for the 750-mile bike race, Paris-Brest-Paris in 2011.
“Fathers and sons don’t always have the kind of relationship Jay and his dad have,” Alumbaugh said. “They shared so many common interests. It was fun to be on the sidelines or a little bit a part of that. They were very supportive of each other.”
Though Jim enjoyed a variety of topics, those closest to him enjoyed watching Jim and his wife, Judy foster a strong family environment. College sweethearts, Jim married Judy Owens in 1967.
“Jim and Judy were like peanut butter and jelly,” Margaret White said. “They were just a perfect match. And they set an example of enjoying life.”
“With family, there are good time and hard times,” Alumbaugh said. “What I witnessed was their solid support for their kids, Jill and Jay, and their families. They wanted to be there for them and help them develop and grow.”
Yost was semi-retired, and trusted Jill and Jay to run the family business. With more time on his hands, Jim and Judy traveled to France at least once a year, showing Central Illinois residents the French countryside and culture.
The community-oriented businessman donated a trip to France to the Mahomet Area Youth Club Auction each year. While organizations often use the money bid to go towards the price of the ticket, Jim paid for the trip in full so the money bid went directly back to MAYC.
Jim and Judy also sponsored the MAYC Half-Marathon and 5K each year. The couple also volunteered their time and talents to MAYC.
“In his heart, it was about people and community,” Camille Born said.
Yost, who fell in love with the landscape, food and culture of France many years ago, took nine of his closest friends from Mahomet to Southern France in May before meeting up with his children and grandchildren in Normandy.
Margaret and Ron White along with Camille and Bob Born visited France as top bidders in the MAYC auction in previous years. Yost’s jam-packed France tour highlighted all France had to offer in history, food, wine and art.
“In all of our travels, it was the most incredible trip of our life because of Jim,” Margaret said. “He picked all the right places to see. He knew all the information. He was like a walking encyclopedia. He made history come to life.”
On the trip through Southern France, Jim took his friends to Roman ruins, enthralled by their engineering feats.
“He and Judy loved France,” Born said. “And so when they are looking for people to come with them and share it, that’s what it was. He had such joy in the food and in the people and in the history there. It was such a joy, he just wanted to share it with other people. He kept saying on the trip, ‘Isn’t this great! I keep telling people how wonderful France is. I don’t understand why everyone doesn’t come.’ He took joy in watching everyone else fall in love with the places we were at.”
“It was such a reflection of Jim,” Margaret said. “While we were there, we had blue skies and sun everyday. It was a reflection of his attitude for life.”
The group of friends enjoyed watching how Jim interacted with the people in France. They watched him chat with people in the small towns, and were amazed at how he arranged to store his World War II vehicles on other’s property.
“(Jim and Judy) go and stay at someone’s B&B, and the next time they go, they are friends with them,” Born said.
While Alumbaugh did not go on the trip to France, he enjoyed watching how Jim interacted with people at home, too.
“He enjoyed interacting with people, and getting to know people,” he said. “He was always interested in ‘What have you been up to?’ or “What are you interested in right now?’ Jay used to have a car show, and Jim would get to know all the other people who were showing their cars.”
When Born’s mother passed away a year ago, she immediately called Jim at Owen’s Funeral Home because she knew he would treat her and her sister like family. In her time of grief, Jim greeted her with a bear hug.
“You look at a guy who likes to expound on things, and you think he’s a businessman. This guy doesn’t care,” Born said. “But he’s so community-oriented.”
But White said the highlight of his life may have been having all of his family in Normandy this spring. Born noticed how Yost lit up as he watched Judy with the grandchildren before the group left to return to Mahomet.
“He was proud to have them all together,” Born said. “I think he wanted to instill that history in the grandkids.”
Jim arranged for his World War II vehicle to be in Normandy with his family, and Judy purchased matching outfits for everyone to wear in a picture.
Funeral arrangements for Jim include a visitation from 4 to 8 p.m., July 30 at Owens Funeral Home in Champaign. The funeral service will be held at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Champaign at 10 a.m. on Thursday.
The family asks that donations be made out to the Airborne Demonstration Team (ADT) to honor and serve the memory of the men who fought and died to preserve America’s freedom during World War II.
“He’s going to be missed in so many ways,” Alumbaugh said.”Not just in Mahomet or Seymour or Champaign. The passion for life that he had. He filled up every minute of each day of his life. He was a special guy.”
