In Memory of Chris James (10/4/16)

My name is Terry James. I'm Chris' brother. Yesterday, October 4, 2016, our family was given the news that Chris would no longer be in our lives. In an instant time stopped. Our family was changed forever. We would no longer be able to share our lives with one of the most caring, biggest hearted guys I've ever known, my brother and my friend, Chris.

No longer would we share those weekend BBQs or those hunting stories. No longer would we share his love of family, the outdoors, and all the laughs and giggles all his nieces had for him on a daily basis---and it was daily, if not hourly.

In that instant, and what became so evident over the next 24 hours, it's important to cherish the little things and not get so caught up in life that you let the important things go unnoticed and unappreciated.

Little things like learning how to BBQ and field dress a deer from your younger brother, watching the face of your daughter light up with a smile when she sees his car pull in the driveway, sitting on the porch remembering "the good 'old days" growing up, or his ability to crack a joke when you least expect it.  All these and many more, are the memories we will cherish most in the days ahead.  These "little moments" in our lives can easily seem insignificant, but looking back, it's these memories that will mean the most. I beg of you, please take the time to tell your family, your kids, your friends how much you love them and are glad they are in your lives and make time to appreciate the little things because you may not get another tomorrow...

As we attempt to understand how God's plan (and why taking Chris home so soon was part of that plan) our family will spend the weeks and months grieving the loss of our brother, son, cousin, nephew, uncle and friend. As too many of you know after the loss of family or someone close to you, the grief and feeling of being lost is only part of the process. This page has been set up for my parents in an attempt to help with another part of the process, the funeral and the costs associated with it.

As you are all painfully aware, Chris' death yesterday was a shock to all of us. Often times, unexpected tragedy also brings unexpected expenses. This page has been set up to help my parents in their time of need to help with some of the expenses of the funeral and burial services for Chris in the coming days.

They are too humble to ask anyone for help themselves, that is why I am doing this for them, in an attempt to try and ease their already heavy burden of losing their son.  After losing a loved one, some of you may already know how large of an expense a funeral can be. For those who don't know, the goal set for this Fund will only cover SOME of the expenses, nowhere near all of them. This is only an attempt to offer some relief.

For those who are wondering, Chris went to Southeast Hospital by ambulance Monday night. Chris called 911 himself around 1030 p.m. He was having issues with high blood pressure and his medications. After arriving at Southeast by ambulance, they admitted him. A couple hours later, around 230 a.m. he started having serious trouble breathing, to the point that he stopped breathing at around 3am...

Chris had sleep apnea, but this was not that. He would stop breathing for long periods of time (45+ seconds) and then forcefully take a gasp of breath. The belief was a combination of his medications and sleep apnea, along with some alcohol, had caused his breathing to slow and eventually just stop. My mother, Bonnie James, was in the room and tried several time to shake him awake to get him to start breathing again. She could not get him to wake up or take a breath. She yelled for the nurse and they called a "code blue." A "crash cart" and manual CPR were initiated some time after. My dad and I arrived at Chris' room about this time. They performed CPR on him for approximately 30 minutes attempting to get him breathing again...but it was too late.

Chris died at 3:40 a.m. on October 4, 2016 at 35 years young.

In lieu of flowers at the funeral, or if you cannot make the services, please consider making a donation to this Fund in memory of Chris. ANY amount is appreciated and will go to help ease the pain and grief our family is going through.

Please also share this page on Facebook and with family and friends who knew Chris.

ALL funds donated will be used by my parents (Eddy and Bonnie James) to help cover the funeral and burial expenses for Chris. Funds will ONLY be used for these expenses.

Your thoughts, prayers, texts, phone calls, facebook posts, and any donations to this Fund mean everything to our family. We can't thank you enough for your compassion and heartfelt actions during this difficult time in our life.