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James Powell Obituary
Indianapolis - Jim Powell passed away in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, on January 27, 2020 at the age of 69. Jim was born in Elwood, Indiana, on February 19, 1950 to parents Phillip and Emalee (Hubbard) Powell. He graduated from Elwood High School and went on to earn his bachelor's degree from Purdue University and his MFA degree in fiction writing from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Jim was proud of founding the Indiana Writers Center (formerly the Writers' Center of Indianapolis), a statewide, nonprofit organization which mentors writers, in 1979. He served as Executive Director of the organization for twenty years. In recent years, he was a Senior Lecturer in the English Department at IUPUI, where he passed on his editorial expertise and compassionate, if at times curmudgeonly, coaching to generations of writers of short fiction. In 2019, Jim published Only Witness, a collection of short stories, through the Indiana Writers Center to commemorate the Center's 40th anniversary.
Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Phillip and Emalee. He leaves to cherish his memory, his beloved wife, Karen Kovacik; his cousin Tom Hastings (wife, Ursina Hastings-Heinz); his much loved goddaughter, Natasha Hastings-Heinz, and cousins James Hubbard (partner Bruce Walters), David Hubbard, and Tom Hubbard (wife Diane); his in-laws who cared for him deeply—Fran Kovacik; Linda and John Maassen; Pete and Nichole Kovacik; nieces Carrie, Natalie, and Emma Kovacik; nephew Mateo Palos and his wife Julia; as well as many other family members and close friends.
Friends may call from 4 pm until 8 pm, Sunday, February 2, 2020 at Flanner Buchanan-Broad Ripple (1305 Broad Ripple Avenue, Indianapolis). A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, February 3, 2020 at St. Mary Catholic Church (311 N. New Jersey Street, Indianapolis). Burial will be private in Oaklawn Memorial Gardens Cemetery.
Memorial contributions in Jim's memory may be made to the Indiana Writers Center; Compassion & Choices, and / or Exodus Refugee Organization.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for James Powell
2 Entries
Charlotte Alabaster
February 29, 2020
Very much loved seasonal and well seasoned member of the Puerto Vallarta Writers Group. We miss you Jim and wish you eternal peace and rest and sincere condolences to your dear family. Charlotte Alabaster
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Jared Carter
February 1, 2020
Jim Powell's journey began in 1950 in the small town of Elwood, Indiana. The cohesiveness of its community and the quality of its schools provided him with a sense of generosity and fair play, along with an interest in books and literature, that would stay with him for the rest of his life.
He remained true to those Midwestern roots, and always spoke of the town of his birth with genuine affection. It was my privilege to have been born and raised in that same town. I grew up there a few years earlier than Jim, but my experiences were similar to his.
In later years, on occasions when he and I got together, there was always this understanding that we were fellow townsmen, and that in our imaginations and our memories, we were never really far from home.
Jim went on to explore and to visit many different locales and places to Purdue University in West Lafayette, to Bowling Green, Ohio, to a bookstore in Los Angeles, to employment in Washington DC, to Saudi Arabia, to Mexico, and not least to the community of Broad Ripple, in Indianapolis, where he resided for a number of years, and where he founded what eventually became the Indiana Writers Center.
His outlook was invariably sunny. He made friends everywhere he went, and encouraged and helped aspiring writers by the dozens. His book of short stories, Only Witness, is illuminated by the details of the places he came to know, and the warmth of the many friends and colleagues who shared his love of writing and his enthusiasm for life.
I join them now in remembering Jim Powell with affection and esteem.
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Memorial Events
for James Powell
Feb
2
Visitation
4:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Flanner Buchanan - Broad Ripple1305 Broad Ripple Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46220
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Flanner Buchanan - Broad Ripple1305 Broad Ripple Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46220
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