James Loren Burrus

1950 - 2022

James Loren Burrus
Arcadia - James Loren "Jim" Burrus, 72, of Arcadia passed away Friday, April 22, 2022 at Springfield Memorial Hospital. He was born January 11,1950 in Jacksonville the son of Loren W. "Pete" and Marie C. Bertolino Burrus. He married Mary Bergschneider on July 12, 1969 at the Church of Our Saviour in Jacksonville and she survives.
He is also survived by his daughter, Heather (Don) Viele of Springfield; his grandchildren, Jared Viele and Olivia Viele; his sister, Lou Ann (Ron) Sweatman of Bloomington and two nieces, Gina Holtz and Angi Bobsin. He was preceded in death by his parents.
Jim attended Lincoln Land Community College and then returned to the family farm. He was a lifelong farmer in the Arcadia area, where he raised corn and soybeans. He also raised organic grass fed Angus cattle and was a pioneer of Management Intensive Grazing in this area. He enjoyed mentoring farmers who wanted to get started in Intensive Grazing and was very willing to help them however he could. He hosted several farm walks on his farm as a way to inform farmers about his practices. He along with his wife earned the Illinois Beef Association Environmental Steward of the Year Award in 2006, the Morgan County Conservation Farm Family of the Year in 2014 and the Illinois Department of Agriculture's Sustainable Agriculture Farmer of the Year Award. He attended St. Mark's Catholic Church in Winchester. Jim was a founding member of the Jacksonville Flying Club. He held his private pilot's license and loved flying whenever he could. He enjoyed having coffee in the morning with his friends and afternoon breaks at Klem's Hangar at the Jacksonville Airport.
A funeral mass will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 26, 2022 at St. Mark's Catholic Church in Winchester with burial at Calvary Cemetery in Jacksonville The family will meet friends following a 4:00 p.m. prayer service until 6:30 p.m. on Monday at Williamson Funeral Home in Jacksonville. In lieu of flowers, mass intentions may be made or memorials may be given to Routt Catholic High School. Condolences may be left online at www.airsman-hires.com.