MILFORD — James Roger “Jim” McCrea passed away on September 28, 2026, following a brief battle with cancer, surrounded peacefully by his family.
A visitation will be held Friday, October 2, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Turner Jenness Funeral Home, 1101 10th Street in Milford. A memorial service will be held Saturday, October 3, beginning at 11 a.m. at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 2300 27th Street in Spirit Lake, with lunch to follow. In Jim’s honor, those attending are encouraged to dress in golf-casual attire with a Hawkeye theme.
Jim was born in Spencer, Iowa, to Paul and Darlene McCrea and grew up in Eldora alongside his sister, Jan. His younger years were filled with football, basketball, Boy Scouts, work on a friend’s farm and a milk delivery job. Family trips to visit his grandparents in St. Louis helped spark a lifelong devotion to the St. Louis Cardinals.
He graduated from William Penn University in 1967 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. While serving with the state lake patrol in Coralville, a cousin introduced Jim to her roommate, Joyce DeWall, beginning a love story that would span nearly six decades.
Jim was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War and was stationed at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Jim and Joyce married on December 24, 1967. Their family grew with the arrival of daughter Robin and sons Randall and Michael, and they eventually settled in the Iowa Great Lakes area.
That move became the beginning of decades of service to his family, church and community.
Jim coached youth softball, baseball and basketball, drove buses for junior high and high school activities and later helped young children through Joyful Journeys. He served on the school booster club and community center board and held numerous leadership positions at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Spirit Lake, including Elder, President of the Congregation and Chairman of the Board of Trustees.
Bringing people together was one of Jim’s defining qualities. He organized annual gatherings for family and friends and regularly traveled across Iowa and around the country to stay connected with those he cared about.
That dedication was especially apparent in the trips Jim and Joyce made to see their grandchildren. For more than 20 years, the couple repeatedly made a roughly 22-hour drive so they could be there for birthdays, Christmas celebrations and other milestones.
Jim rarely met a stranger. His family remembered his remarkable ability to find a connection with seemingly anyone he encountered, even while traveling far from home.
His favorite things included golf, the St. Louis Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings and Iowa Hawkeyes, but none compared with his devotion to his family. He especially treasured Joyce, his wife of nearly 59 years, their three children and two grandchildren.
Jim is survived by his wife, Joyce McCrea; daughter Robin (Jan) McCrea; sons Randall (Mindy) McCrea and Michael (Andre) McCrea; granddaughter Grace McCrea; grandson John McCrea; and sister Jan Shafer.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Paul and Darlene; father-in-law Henry; mother-in-law Minnie; and numerous brothers- and sisters-in-law.
Memorial contributions will be directed to the Joyful Journeys scholarship program.
The family’s complete obituary and additional service information are available through Turner Jenness Funeral Home.
NorthIowaToday.com publishes obituaries and remembrances for families and funeral homes free of charge.
One note before publishing: the funeral home page contains a birth-date discrepancy — its header says May 14, 1944, while the obituary text says May 12, 1944 — so I left the exact birth date and age out rather than risk publishing the wrong one.