Memorial set for Educator/Senior Activist, Jim Wright who died on Sept 24, 2007 at the Veteran’s Hospital in Menlo Park, CA, after a long illness. He was born on July 18, 1925 in Spokane, WA; father of the late Deborah Wright LoBue, Julie Wright and James Milloy Wright of San Jose, CA, former husband of Phyllis Zemer Wright, brother-in-law of William Zemer, Isabella Z. Lively and Shirley Z. Swenson, uncle to numerous nephews and nieces.
Jim was raised in Santa Clara, CA and joined the U.S.Marine Corps Reserve before graduation from high school. He was called to active duty during WWII, serving in the Philippines from 1943-1945. After the war he received his high school diploma and attended San Jose State University using his GI Bill of Rights, receiving his BA degree in Dec.1950. He was called back to active duty for 1 year during the Korean War in Jan. 1951 and stationed at Camp Pendleton, CA. Upon honorable discharge, he attended Stanford University receiving his MA degree and first job as a counselor at Edwin Markham Middle School in San Jose in 1953. In 1956 he was hired by the U.S. Army Overseas Schools in Germany to be a counselor at Bremerhaven High School for U.S. dependent children for 1 year and counselor for 2 years at the high school in Heidelberg where his daughter Julie was born. Upon his return to the U.S. he was student counselor at Live Oak High School in Morgan Hill and later became Vice Principal. He was the first Principal of Martin Murphy Middle School in the Morgan Hill Unified School District when it opened in 1980. After retirement he lived in Morgan Hill and was active in many organizations including the Local Kiwanis Club, Santa Clara County Advisory Council on Aging; Local AARP; Assemblyman to Calif Sr Assembly; member of Silver haired Congress; and the American Legion. Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. on Sat., Sept 29, 2007, at the Advent Lutheran Church, Murphy Ave, Morgan Hill. Private burial service will be held next week at the San Joaquin National Cemetery in Gustine, CA.
