Jim Kiehne's Memorial

  Jim Kiehne’s Memorial 

  By

      Mike Capron

What a beautiful celebration of Jim Kiehne’s life.  Beautiful meal served on tables outside under a huge tent. Slightly breezy, cool for June 10th, dry but beautiful. The meat was cooked under ground like they have been doing it their whole life and everyone brought salads, desserts, all served on a table as long as your catch rope. More food than people and plenty of chairs and tables to eat on. I would guess 200 people of all walks of life. I was amazed at the diversity of people. Cowboys, ranchers, lawyers, politicians, government employees, teachers, business men from lots of different towns, and a huge family gathering. This was all taking place at Jim and Bonnie’s home between Hueco Tanks and Coronudas , Texas. I have known Jim for thirty plus years but I was only involved with his ranching operation for a short time when I first met him,  but our friendship continued because of our common interest in horses, cows, big ranches, and big outside space. I had no idea where all these people came from. As I watched and listened to the different testimonies given at the memorial, I was amazed how everyone loved Jim for the same reasons. Jim loved them all and paid attention to each and everyone of them. He made them feel comfortable and important. I learned a lot at the memorial because I could see how much Jim had accomplished with his personality and people connections. It was great to hear all the stories about Jim and how he had interacted with so many different people. Everyone looked at Jim like he was their best friend.  Certainly was a great eyeopener for me.