James William Payne

He was born on October 21, 1942, in East Bernstadt, Kentucky, to the late William Lee Payne and Beulah (Shoop) Payne]. Growing up, he spent a good portion of his childhood in the Dayton, Ohio area. He graduated from Bethel High School in 1961 and soon after joined the United States Army and was stationed for a while in Germany. A few years later, he re-enlisted in the Army, and spent a year in Viet Nam, in service to his country. He developed a lifelong love of horses, specifically, Draft Horses, from the time he volunteered at Carriage Hill Metro Park, where he drove a team of two Belgium draft horses that pulled the hay wagon.

James (Jim) dedicated 20 years to his career in the Engineering Division at W.P.A.F.B. where he was known for his easy-going personality and work ethic. After he retired from Wright Patt, he took a job at Tecumseh High School as a school bus driver for the next 5 years, at which time he retired a second time and moved to Florida.

James (Jim) is survived by his mother, Beulah Morris, his sisters, Alma Matthews and Karen Miller, and his children, James Scott Payne (Wendy), William Edward Payne, and Paul Andrew Payne, and his grandson, Dominic Andrew Payne. He was preceded in death by his father William Lee Payne, stepfather Paul Morris, his brother Carl Lee Payne, and stepbrother, Gary Morris.

Services & Donations

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Carriage Hill MetroPark c/o Five Rivers MetroParks Foundation, 409 E. Monument Ave., Dayton, OH 45402 in his memory.

A celebration of life will be held on a later date. All friends and family will be welcome to attend and celebrate his wonderful life.