James Bluestone Jr.

James Bluestone Jr., 62, Aberdeen, SD, passed away Friday, July 18, 2025, at an Aberdeen hospital.
Family and Friends Gathering: Monday, July 21, 2025, from 2-4 p.m. at Langhans Funeral Home, Parshall
Wake: Monday, July 21, 2025, beginning at 5 p.m. at Thomas Johnny Bird Veterans Memorial Hall, New Town
Funeral: Tuesday, July 22, 2025, at 10 a.m. at Thomas Johnny Bird Veterans Memorial Hall, New Town
Burial: Queen of Peace Catholic Cemetery, Raub
Senior Pallbearer: Nelson Heart Jr.
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Our beloved son, father, brother, and uncle went home to be with the Lord on July 18, 2025. He was sixty-two years old. He was a child of the Low Cap clan.
James "Sugar Boy" Bluestone was born on November 30, 1962, in Minot, North Dakota, to James Bluestone and Dixie Whitetree Bluestone. James had two siblings with whom he grew up. They were the best of friends and especially enjoyed summers as they played football, baseball, and swam. They also rode their bikes wherever they lived. They lived and went to school in North Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and New Mexico. Many summers, he would spend a month at Bluestone Village, staying with his grandparents, Grandma and Grandpa Bluestone. He helped with whatever chores were necessary. He also enjoyed spending time with his many relatives, getting into whatever mischief they could find on the ranch.
James graduated from Crownpoint High School in Crownpoint, New Mexico, in 1981. While in high school, he participated in football, basketball, and track. As a senior, he qualified for the state track meet in the shot put. He was the President of his graduating class and the class Valedictorian. He attended Boys State. North Dakota Senator Quentin Burdick nominated him for the United States Military Academy at West Point.
After high school, he attended college at Bottineau for a year. He transferred to the University of North Dakota at Grand Forks. He received a bachelor's degree in history in 1987. While at UND, he was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
After graduation, he was recruited and accepted a position as the Clerk of Court for the Northern Plains Intertribal Court of Appeals in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He spent his entire working career at the Court of Appeals. He assisted with over five hundred appeal cases during his career. Due to failing health, he retired after thirty-five years of dedicated service.
Through marriage to Kris (Schwiegman) Bluestone, they had three children: Tara, James Joseph, and Kyra. He was a proud father. He was extremely active in their lives and was well known by family and friends as an excellent parent. He was very active in all their activities. He enjoyed taking them to the Black Hills to visit relatives. As an avid movie fan, he enjoyed taking them to all the new releases.
He enjoyed sports. He was a lifelong fan of the Oklahoma Sooners. His home was decorated with Sooner memorabilia. He attended many Sooners football games over the years with his brothers. He was also a fan of the Washington Commanders and the Minnesota Vikings. He and Arnie Grady, as well as Raymond Grady, would talk football for hours.
He enjoyed going to the movie theatre. His favorite movies included The Godfather, Goodfellas, Jaws, and the Billy Jack movies. He enjoyed discussing movies with families and friends.
James "Sugar Boy" enjoyed visiting his relatives on the Fort Berthold reservation. He was a favorite of many of them. He had a quiet way about him. He was a mindful thinker who rarely got angry. He was very generous. He was willing to help anyone and everyone. He often gave money to people who were less fortunate than he was.
James will be missed greatly.
James was preceded in death by his father, James; paternal grandparents, Tom & Margaret Bluestone; maternal grandparents, Frank & Evelyn Whitetree; brothers Joseph Keith Bluestone and James Lawrence Kaulaity Bluestone; and sister Stephanie Blevins.
James is survived by his children/family: Daughters: Tara (Steven) Bluestone-Marx and Kyra Bluestone, Aberdeen, SD. Son: James Joseph Bluestone of Aberdeen, SD. Mother: Dixie Bluestone, Fargo. Brothers: Marc Sr. (Carolyn), New Town, Rex, Parshall, and Arnie (Liezel) Grady, rural Parshall. Many Nieces and Nephews. Aunties' Ella Mae (Bluestone) Baker, Bismarck, and Phyllis (Bluestone) Wells (Steve), Bismarck. Uncle Rex Whitetree of Sapulpa, OK.