Obituary of James Rubin Roberts, Jr.

James Rubin Roberts Jr. “Jim”, 63, of Edina, died Sunday, December 12, 2021 after a short illness at Maplewood Care Center in Maplewood, MN. 

Jim’s memorial will be held at the Cremation Society of Minnesota, 7110 France Avenue South Edina, MN 55435 on January 8, 2022 at 11:00 AM. Visitation at 10:00AM

Jim was born May 18 1958 in Salina, Kansas, the son of Bertie(Crooks) and James Ruben Roberts.   The family relocated to Florida when Jim was very young, and he spent his early years, up until high school in the Miami area.  Jim was a gifted athlete, playing football and bowling at a high level from a young age.  Graduating in 1976, Jim followed in his father’s footsteps and became a certified airline mechanic for Eastern Airlines.  Jim and his father worked together at Eastern up until his father’s death in 1994.  After Eastern’s acquisition by Northwest Airlines, Jim moved to Georgia and held several high level positions in the Airline Mechanics Union.

Jim lived life large.  His outgoing personality was a perfect match for this large man and he was a master at almost everything he chose to do.  As a Bowler, Jim had seventeen 300 games and countless 800 series to his credit.  In the 1990’s Jim took up professional bass fishing and was so successful that he was soon sponsored by numerous boat & tackle manufacturers.  As recently as 2011, Jim took up long distance rifle shooting, and within a few short years BigDog58 had achieved record level (sub-3 inch) consistency on 1000 yard targets with his custom loads and 50 caliber rifle.

Jim was a member of several gun clubs in the Minneapolis area and very active supporting rifle matches and competitions as both an official and volunteer.

Jim is survived by his wife, Natalie,  stepsons Gary and David as well as his beloved Beagle, Louie.  Jim was preceded in death by his parents.

Jim will be missed by his family and by his many friends, including his neighbors at Lynmar Lane and his fellow competitors in the FCSA.  The family is especially thankful to the staff at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park for the diligent care provided to Jim over the past 6 weeks.