James E. Loos
Jan. 13, 1930 - Mar. 24,2022
Resident of Saratoga
James E. Loos passed away peacefully surrounded by family at the age of 92 after an extended illness. Jim was a quiet and gentle man of incredible strength, integrity and determination, ever devoted to his family. He was born on January 13, 1930 to Vincent Emmet Loos and Mabel Agnes Mannion in LaSalle, Illinois, in the old family house built in 1886 by his grandfather, Michael E. Loos, the third of four children. The family lived in the old house in LaSalle and worked on the Mannion family farm in Harmon in the summers. Both sides of the family were in the LaSalle and Harmon areas so it was a lively but hard-working childhood filled with family gatherings, ice-skating on frozen ponds in the winter, fishing in the summer, and sports year round, including basketball, football and hockey. Jim was especially close to his youngest brother, Jack; they were the two youngest kids in the family and did everything together.
His ancestors immigrated to the United States from Ireland (Counties Galway (Mannion, Mulraney), Longford (Farrell), Caven (McGovern, King), Roscommon/Mayo (Igo, Carney)), Luxembourg (Loos) and Switzerland (Miller/Mueller). The first arrived from Ireland in 1845 and the last arrived from Switzerland in 1863. All had family farms in northwestern Illinois, including Freeport, Sterling, Harmon and LaSalle, with many remaining there until the late 1990s, and some are still in the area, living on a part of the original Miller farm. Michael Loos was a 2nd lieutenant in the Union Army (34th Illinois Infantry) from 1861 to 1865 under General Sherman. John Mannion bought the Mannion farm outside Harmon, Illinois in 1872. Christopher Miller bought the Miller Farm in Montmorency, Illinois in 1865. Anna Farrell was a fundraiser for the Irish Republican Army (IRA) from the 1890s up until the Irish Rebellion in 1916.
Jim excelled in both academics and sports from an early age, attending St. Patrick's School and the High School and Junior College in LaSalle. He got his Master's in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois in Champaign in 1952. When the Illinois football team made it into the 1952 Rose Bowl, Jim and his college buddies traveled to Pasadena, California, to see the game in person. The fantastic weather convinced him that California was the place for him, which led him to accept a position at Convair Aeronautics (later General Dynamics) in San Diego in June of 1952 right after college, where he met his life-long friend Richard (Dick) Martin. While working at Convair, Jim met his future wife, Evelyn Johnson, through her brother, Richard (Dick) Johnson, who was also at Convair at the time. Jim and Evelyn were married in 1954 at St. Francis Xavier Church in Phoenix, Evelyn's home town.
Jim and Evelyn started their married life in San Diego and began their large family. In 1962, Jim moved the family to Altadena to join a start-up company, and then, in 1963, was recruited to Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale because of his expertise in gas dynamics. He remained at Lockheed from 1963 until he retired in 1993. His career was amazing, starting with the design of the air intake for one of the first sustained supersonic fighter jets, the F-102 Delta Dart, to top-secret missile and laser weapon design and finally ending with work on the Space Shuttle and International Space Station. Dad was extremely well-respected in his profession, known for his patience, ability to unravel complicated problems while remaining calm.
The family moved to Saratoga in 1963, to a house that became the center of the universe for his family and friends for 34 years. Jim was active in Boy Scouts, High School Groups, Sacred Heart Parish and other civic organizations. He led "50 miler" backpack trips with the Boy Scouts and high school groups, and continued backpacking with his kids and friends until his mid-60s. Camping and outdoor adventures were a mainstay in family life. The family lived in the Saratoga house until 1998.
Jim and Evelyn moved to the Villages in San Jose, where they enjoyed retirement. Both loved to travel and cruise, but especially enjoyed their growing family and grandchildren. His beloved Evelyn passed away on February 8, 2006, breaking the family's heart.
Jim remained active through his late 80s, continuing to travel extensively, visiting all continents, including Antarctica, golfing with the SIRS group, building houses with Habitat for Humanity and leading the Villages Emergency Preparedness. He and long-time family friend, Elaine Ladd Linders, who lived next door to us in Saratoga, discovered they had much in common and were "unofficially" married in Deer Park, Washington, in 2014. They traveled back and forth between Washington and California, and went on numerous cruises together, until the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. The last two years have been difficult, especially after Dad became ill in April of 2021. He spent his last months in remarkable care at Mercy Retirement and Care Center in Oakland, for which the family will be eternally grateful.
Jim is pre-deceased by his parents, his sister Mary Agnes Brown, brother-in-law John A. Brown, and brothers Robert Edward (Bob) Loos, his sister-in-law Margaret (Peg) A. (Myers) Loos and John Francis (Jack) Loos, his brother-in-law Richard (Dick) Leroy Johnson and sister-in-law Rosemary (Jeff) (Jeffreys) Johnson. He also lost his favorite son-in-law, Richard (Rick) G. Magarian, in late 2021.
Jim is survived by his children James (Jim) E. Loos II, Margaret (Peg) M. Magarian, Stephen (Steve) V. Loos (Kym Spangler), Anne M. Loos, Joseph (Joe) R. Loos (Wendy Murata) and Paul D. Loos Callan (Skye Callan), his grandchildren Chris McCaw, Nicholas J. Magarian, Thomas J. Magarian, Christopher R. Loos, Brian A. Loos, Johnnie M. Callan, Braige B. Callan and Seven T. Callan, all residing in the greater San Francisco Bay Area in California. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, Dorothea (Rochinski) Loos of San Diego, many nieces and nephews, and many wonderful friends.
Dad remained devoted to his family through many hardships, never wavering. He was a pillar of strength, our rock, the heart of the family, our "Chairman of the Board" for the entire extended family. He was good and honorable man with amazing integrity, an example to all with his quiet strength. We have suffered a huge loss and we will carry him in our hearts forever, consoled knowing that Dad is now with Mom in heaven.
The family wishes to thank the special people so crucial to Dad's support:
The 2nd floor staff at Mercy, Best Care team Jun Villaruel, Joseph Reyes, Joseph Fuerte, Conchita Herce and John Redelosa, and our wonderful caregiver at the Villages, Tess Bueno.

View the online memorial for James E. Loos