James D. Reuter

1929 - 2025

James D. Reuter
1929 - 2025
I died on August 2, 2025. I don't know this now, of course, so someone else filled in the date. Other than that, the words that follow are my own, unless they got tinkered with afterwards (which is ok).
I was born in Iowa in 1929 and raised in Sumner, a small farm town located in the northeast corner of Iowa. My dad owned and operated a one-truck freight line that delivered goods to stores and businesses in several nearby towns. My mom was a registered nurse who did not practice after she began raising a family. I have an older brother, Steve, and two younger sisters, Joan and Carol, all now over 90. We are spread from Colorado to Connecticut. When we manage to get together, we have a good time.
In recent decades I have come to realize what a great thing it was to grow up in a small town in the 1930's and 40's. The noon and 6 o'clock fire sirens told you when to go home for meals, and the screeching whistle of the 8:35 Chicago Great Western passenger train was the day's curfew. For me, though, the best thing was that this girl Mary Heyer also lived in Sumner. We were in the same high school class, but nothing serious until the year after graduation. We got married when Mary finished nurse's training and settled in South Dakota while I put in the last year of a four-year hitch in the Air Force.
After this it was four years at Iowa State College (my gratitude for the GI Bill has never ended!), a year with an airline, and a move to Missouri, where I got a job as an aerodynamics engineer with the McDonnell Aircraft Company. My assignments centered on testing and man-rating the parachute stabilization and landing systems of first the Mercury and then the Gemini manned spacecraft.
In 1964, a desire to remain active in emerging space-age requirements for flexible aerodynamic systems brought me and my family of six to Manchester to work for the Pioneer Parachute Company on Forest Street. I was manager of the engineering department from 1967 to 1983 when I was named president of a new subsidiary Pioneer International Aircraft, Inc. There I lead a team developing an ultra-light aircraft named Flightstar. This job had its rewards and the very best one was piloting a Flightstar over Crystal Lake at the end of a work day. This was as near to the flying sensations I dreamed about as a kid as I would ever find.
After retiring from Pioneer in 1994, I continued to stay involved in several spaceflight programs for 23 more years as a part-time consultant. This allowed me the freedom to travel the US and Europe with Mary whenever the spirit moved us, spend time with my grandkids, and pedal my bike whenever the wind wasn't blowing too hard.
I am survived by my three siblings, Steve Reuter of Sumner, IA; Joan Ribbeck of Rock Island, IL; and Carol Stamp (Robert) of Highlands Ranch, CO; my children James (Julia) Reuter of Bethel, ME; William (Sharon) of Baltimore, MD; Charles (Ann Marie) of Granby, CT; and Rebecca (Robert) Pilver, of Willington, CT; as well as grandchildren Colin (Christin) Reuter of Leeds, MA; John (Lexie) Reuter of Hailey, ID; Alicia Reuter of New York, NY; and Matthew (Alayna) Reuter of Brooklyn, NY; and three great-grandchildren, Simon, Amelia, and Otto.
I was predeceased by my wife of 73 years, Mary, my parents, Carl and Alvina (Gienapp) Reuter, sisters-in-law Marlys Reuter, Pat O'Brien, Gretchen Backlund, and brothers-in-law Jim Ribbeck, Jim Heyer, and Warner Heyer.
I can't think of anything that would have made my life better, or anyone I would rather have shared it with than Mary and my family.
A service honoring Jim's life will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, August 15, 2025, at Emanuel Lutheran Church, 60 Church Street, Manchester, to be followed by a lunch. All are welcome to attend.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Manchester Historical Society or Emanuel Lutheran Church, Manchester. For online condolences, please visit www.tierneyfuneralhome.com.