Jim Filleman

The family of James Carl Filleman are sad to announce that he has left us. While incredibly sad, we are also very proud of the man that he was and the full life that he lived.

Jim was born November 16, 1935, in Clifton, AZ to Ocie and Walter "Mike" Filleman. He passed away on July 11, 2025, in Thatcher, AZ.

During his early years, the family lived on Upper Eagle Creek at the Filleman ranch. The memories of life on "The Creek", as well as the summers he spent on ranches with family friends were some of his favorite memories and basis of his stories for the rest of his life.

In 1942, he moved with his family to Silver City, NM where they lived until their return to Morenci in 1950. Jim graduated from Morenci High School in 1954. In 1955 he went to work for Phelps Dodge where he would work in many capacities until his retirement in 1995. Jim was very proud of his work history with Phelps Dodge. He began his career as a concentrator cleanup laborer and retired as concentrator superintendent. During those years he made many friends for whom he had great respect. After his retirement, he was always happy when he would bump into these friends and be able to share memories of "the good old days"!

Never one to sit for long, he always had a project or ten to work on. He never called these projects work, he said he was just "piddling"! He had a large shop built at their place in Alpine where he did some beautiful woodworking. If anyone needed help with anything, he was always there to help out. He had about every tool known to man and knew how to use them! After ending a good day of "piddling", he enjoyed sitting on the back porch telling stories and having a cold Coors Light or two. In the morning and evenings, he would watch for the elk in the meadow or take joy in watching the birds, squirrels and chipmunks at his many homemade, wooden feeders!

Whether in Sa ord or Alpine, he was always honored when friends would stop by to visit.

Jim is survived by: his sister, Mary Carpenter; his son, Carl (Nan) Filleman; his daughter, Linda (Alan) Edwards; his grandchildren, Sara, Daniel, Emily, Alan Jr., Jarad and Colter; 10 great-grandchildren; his best friend and brother at heart, Jim Ballard; his beloved pup, Beau; his much loved nieces and nephews as well as many cherished friends.

He is preceded in death by: his father, Walter "Mike" Filleman; mother, Ocie (Chester) Kiehne; daughter, Debra Fischer; brother, Spence Filleman; and wife, Judy Filleman.

Jim was a man of a thousand stories. If you have a memory or story of Jim, whether it be from work, bowling, hunting, fishing, golfing, dancing or beer drinking, please join his family and friends and share your story at the Celebration of his life. Jim's life is worthy of celebrating with laughter, joy and friendship. The Celebration of Jim's life will be conducted at the Vining Funeral Home in Sa ord at a later date.

The family would like to thank Valerie Hernandez, Scott Mulleneaux and the compassionate sta at Essential Patient Care and Beehive. We would also like to thank Robyn Lucht, Kathy Catlett, Pam Contreras, Minnie Whetten, and Lynell Fusner for their wonderful care while he was still at home. Thank you also to Dr. Romero, Dr. Batty, and Chelsea Carpenter for their guidance and compassion.

A Celebration of Jim's Life will be conducted Monday, August 25, 2025, at 11:00 a.m., at Vining Funeral Home's "Chapel of the Valley." Following Jim's service there will be a luncheon at the Branding Iron at 1:00 p.m.