In loving memory of James (Jim) Phillip Gardner. Jim passed away peacefully on July 1st, 2026 holding his granddaughter's hand at Woodland Village in Chehalis, WA. He was 101 years old and still had all his wit and memories.

Jim was born in St. Louis, Missouri on February 27th, 1925 to John David and Lola Mae Gardner. He grew up playing along the banks of the Mississippi River where he developed a love for water. It was no surprise that after the attack on Pearl Harbor he wasted no time in signing up for the U.S. Navy while he was still in high school; only he wasn't quite old enough just yet. The recruiter he spoke to told him to finish up the school year and then come back to see him. June came and with the approval of his parents, Jim joined the U.S. Navy at just 17 years old.

In the Navy, Jim served as a navigator on the USS TIDE, a minesweeper. His ship would travel ahead of the larger vessels in the fleet to detect mines in the ocean. On June 7th, 1944, just one day after "D-Day", his ship struck a mine that led to 100% casualties. Luckily, Jim was not in the navigation room at the time of the strike, and therefore was catapulted into the English Channel where he would be pulled out of the water by John Bulkeley, the same person who rescued General McArthur from Corregidor and gave President JFK the opportunity to be a skipper on a PT boat.

Following his retirement from the Navy, Jim worked several odds and ends jobs including working at Yard Birds, selling insurance, working as security at the Centralia Steam Plant and as a deputy for the Lewis County Sheriff's office. With the sea always calling his name, he made his way back working for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) traveling up and down the west coast and working in Alaska. He also joined the Coast Guard Exhilaray for some time.

Jim leaves behind his son Fred (Sue) Gardner, daughter Dolly (Tom) Hughes, daughter Connie Porter, daughter Mary (Glenn) Fleming, and daughter Tami (Ed) Tedder. He also leaves behind his brothers Robert (Bob), Roger, and Paul Gardner and numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. At 100 years old, Jim met a late in life love, Karen Brown, whom he also leaves behind.

He was preceded in death by his parents John and Lola Gardner, his former wife and the mother of his children Violet Gardner, and his wife Martha (Edgin) Gardner. He was also preceded by siblings George and John Gardner, and Alvina (Gardner) Morrison and children Susie, Jim, and Glen Gardner, son-in-law Pat Porter, and grandson Daniel Tedder.

Please join us in celebrating 101 years of Jim on Sunday August 2nd at the Veteran's Memorial Museum for a service at 3pm. His and Martha's interment will be the following day August 3rd at Tahoma National Cemetery at 10am.

To learn more about the USS Tide, you can read "The Fate of the USS Tide" written by Mark Zangara where he interviewed Jim,