James Nicholas Malapanes
Marriages
Catherine "Kate" Randolph - January 26, 1992
Obituaries
The Daily Sentinel page 6A - February 11, 2022
Jim Malapanes went to
be with his Lord February
3, 2022, following a long
battle with heart disease.
He was born September
25, 1939, one of ten
children, to Nicholas
Malapanes and Agnes (Ogrodwoski) Malapanes in
Chicago, IL. He moved with his family to Phoenix, AZ
in 1945 on a train filled with service members headed
to war.
When he was 18, he joined the US Navy and was
assigned to the heavy cruiser USS Des Moines, CA-134,
as an Electricians Mate. The ship was deployed to the
Mediterranean Sea, and home-ported in Villefranche,
France. He spent three years visiting almost every port
in the Med, including Gibraltar, Valencia, Rhodes,
Marseilles and Beirut. He was awarded an Expeditionary
Medal for action in Lebanon in July 1958.
Upon returning to the states, he became an apprentice
bricklayer and tile-setter, ultimately becoming a journey
level union member and a skilled artist with tile. He was
a police officer for the City of Phoenix for most of the
1960’s.
Jim earned a commercial helicopter pilot license
and went to Alaska in 1972, in search of a pilot job.
Unfortunately for Jim, the Vietnam war was ending and
every military pilot was also applying for jobs. So he
went back to his roots as a bricklayer and tile-setter,
eventually becoming the Business Agent for Local 1
of the Bricklayers and Allied Craftsmen Union for the
State of Alaska.
In 1980 he started J.N. Malapanes Construction
Company in Wasilla, AK. He was a founder of the
Alaska Craftsman Home program, which developed
and promoted techniques for super-insulation of homes
to conserve heat. Jim was an instructor at Wasilla
High School’s Construction Trades program. He was
Director of the Alaska State Homebuilders Association
from 1989 to 1990 and made many trips to Washington,
DC, to lobby on behalf of the National Association of
Home Builders.
In Alaska, Jim lived in an area that was not covered
by any fire department, so he helped establish the
first fire department in the area, Lakes Volunteer Fire
Department, in 1978. Their first call was a house fire
they extinguished using shovels and snow. Lakes VFD’s
first truck was parked in his garage, and the other
volunteers would respond to his house on fire calls. He
managed the volunteer construction of two fire stations,
donating materials and his labor. The Lakes Volunteer
Fire Department was the first in the area to use the Jaws
of Life, and Jim responded to vehicle accidents all over
the Mat-Su Borough. After Lakes VFD merged with
neighboring Wasilla VFD, becoming the Central MatSu FD, Jim became the Assistant Chief and Training
Officer, one of three paid members on the 150 member
/ five station department. His call-sign was Central 3-3,
his lucky numbers, and a call-sign that was not re-issued
after his retirement. In all, he served 18 years on the fire
department.
In 1987, he met his soulmate and partner in adventure,
Catherine “Kate” Randolph, and they married on
January 26, 1992, during the Superbowl and after a
morning of Ice Rescue training. They celebrated their
30th Anniversary one week before his death.
In 1999, following three years in the Seattle area, Jim
and Kate moved to Fruita, CO, where he continued his
volunteer work and public service. He built over 100
wheelchair ramps for disabled indigent people through
the RSVP Handyman Program and is currently pictured
on the cover of their flyer.
He was active in the Mesa County Search and
Rescue ATV Team, responding to numerous midnight
(and occasional daytime) missions for lost or injured
people. He was a member of the Western Slope ATV
Association, helping on numerous trail construction and
repair projects on the Grand Mesa and Uncompahgre
Plateau. He was a member of the K9 Search and Rescue
team based in Dolores, CO, responding to numerous
large-scale searches and training events in CO, AZ, and
NM, and performing maintenance on their equipment.
Most recently he was active with Western Slope Search
Dogs, helping with training and logistics.
He had been active in the Lions Club since 1990. He
served as President of the Wasilla Nooners Lions, the
Maple Valley, WA Lions and the Fruita, CO Lions. In
2007, Jim was honored by Lions Club International
Foundation with the Melvin Jones Fellowship, their
highest form of recognition to acknowledge an
individual’s dedication to humanitarian service.
Jim was a member of the volunteer Wildlife Rescue
Team of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, responding to
injured wildlife, capturing and transporting the animals
to proper care. He assisted in capturing wild turkeys to
band them, cooked for youth hunts, and transported elk
heads for CWD testing.
He volunteered with the Red Cross, deploying with
their Emergency Response Vehicle to Louisiana during
hurricanes Katrina and Ike in 2005, to Texas after
Gustav in 2008, and Windsor, CO following their
devastating tornadoes in 2008. He assisted in multiple
shelter operations in the Grand Valley.
Prior to his marriage to Kate, he had three daughters
from other marriages: Paula Suzette Hilliard who
preceded him in death, Dimitra Kay Steeley, and
Christina Elizabeth Jones.
Jim enjoyed traveling and drove the Alaska Highway
18 times. He drove motor homes thousands of miles
visiting friends, family and shipmates from coast to
coast. Jim hunted, fished, boated, watched NASCAR
races (sometimes in person), spent time with family,
and generally enjoyed life.
He is survived by wife, Kate Malapanes; brother,
Hercules (Shelah) Malapanes, of Cottonwood, AZ;
sisters, Stella Scarla, Effie Churchill, and Georgia
McCormick, all of Phoenix; daughters, Dimitra Steeley
(Dr. Mark Steeley), of Rockford, TN, and Christina
Jones, of Sparta, TN; ex-wife, Mira Dobson, of Phoenix,
AZ; ten grandchildren, and amazing numbers of greatgrandchildren, nieces, and nephews.
Jim was met at the heavenly gates by his parents;
brothers, Vasilios “Bill” Malapanes, and Pietro “Pete”
Malapanes; sister, Mary McGann; two brothers that
died in infancy; daughter, Paula Suzette Watson; son-in-law, Mike Weems; grandson, Jason Nicholas Jones,
and beautiful, intelligent, athletic granddaughter,
Kristin Jones.
Jim’s entire life was dedicated to public service, both
paid and volunteer. He thrived when he was helping
other people. He enriched and saved many lives through
his work. He was truly an “Angel Among Us”. In lieu of
flowers, donations may be made in Jim’s name to any of
the organizations named above or to your own favorite
charity.
There will be a visitation February 16, 2022, from 10
- 12:00 p.m., at Brown’s Funeral Home, 904 N. 7th St.,
Grand Junction, CO. This will be followed by interment
at the Veterans Cemetery of Western Colorado at
1:00 p.m. The family requests that attendees wear the
uniforms or insignia of the organization through which
they know Jim, if possible.
