Obituary of James Edward Greene, Jr.

Husband, Father, Grandfather, Community Leader and Children’s Advocate, James E. Greene, Jr. passed from this life into his eternal home on Sunday, November 7, after a brief illness. Jim was born on May 1, 1942, in Memphis, Tennessee, the only child of Dorothy Jones Greene and James Edward Greene, Sr. After graduating from high school, Jim attended Benedict College in Wisconsin and graduated from Memphis State University. He earned a Master’s Degree in Strategic Marketing from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. He was initiated into Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., while in college and he continued to serve his community throughout his life. Jim served his country with great distinction in the United States Air Force as Captain of Strategic Air Command. He married the love of his life, Carole Ann Spight, on April 10, 1965, in St. Augustine Catholic Church in Memphis. Their union was blessed by the birth of two daughters, Yevette Michelle and Patrice Donielle. In addition to his wife and daughters, Jim is survived by three grandsons, Andre Bradley, Bryan Bradley and James E. Eberhart. Jim was recruited to work in Strategic Marketing at the Upjohn Company (Pfizer) in 1972. He held a number of positions there, retiring as Corporate Planning Director in 2002. With a passion for community service, he assumed many area leadership positions where his expertise was important to the development of programs benefiting the community including: City Of Kalamazoo’s Economic Development Committee, Brownfield Redevelopment, Downtown Kalamazoo, Inc., and Downtown Tomorrow, Inc. However, his enthusiasm for children and their welfare has driven much of his work, as he was the founding Board Chairperson for the Family Institute and Kalamazoo Healthy Futures. Jim was an active member of the Metropolitan Kalamazoo Branch of the NAACP and served as a Board Member and Interim Director of the Douglass Community Association. He received the NAACP Humanitarian Award in 2015. His long association with Bronson Healthcare began in December 1999, when he joined the Board of Directors. He served for 22 years until his passing. He participated on many Board committees including: Facility and Technology Committee, Medical Staff Quality Committee, Joint Conference Committee and Quality Oversight Committee where he served as the first non-physician chair. He was passionate about quality and performance improvement and was always challenging the organization to raise the bar. He studied the role of the Board and educated himself by attending many conferences to ensure Bronson was utilizing the very best practices in leading quality improvement. Jim was also committed to being the very best Board member and achieved the Estes Park Institute’s Trustee certification. He was also nominated and served on the American Hospital Association’s Committee on Governance as a Regional Trustee Liaison to the Regional Policy Board 5. His work with Northside Preschools is great proof of his commitment to ensure that all children have a good educational foundation and healthcare. Other organizational affiliations include: Community Healing Center, Dillion Complex for Independent Living, the Jolly Fellows, Central Lodge # 10, Homer Gaines Consistory # 112 and the Michigan Council of Deliberations. He and Carole attended St. Thomas More Catholic Church.