Jimmy D. Cummins, 86 of Walnut Grove passed away on November 7, 2020. Jim was the son of Willoughby Randolph Cummins (aka Obe and Bill) and Julia Ida Ward. Obe was a native of Walnut Grove, Greene Co, MO. Julia was a native of Wilson, Oklahoma. Jimmy Dee Cummins (Jim) was born in Troup, Smith County, East Texas on May 23, 1934. From there the family moved to Kermit in West Texas. The next move was to Hobbs, New Mexico. The family then moved to Pamapa in the panhandle of Texas. They then moved to Levelland in West Texas. All of the moves were due to Bill's job as Superintendent of Gardner Brother's Drilling Co. The job required that they move each new time a new drilling site opened. At age nine he moved with his family to Walnut Grove, Missouri where he has lived for most of his life.

Jim was baptized and joined the First Christian Church in Walnut Grove in 1946. He played the organ and piano for church services. He served as Sunday school teacher of the young adult class and as the Sunday School Superintendent. He also was elected to the office of deacon. He later served as chairman of the board of deacons and elders. He has been a member of the Church since 1946.

He graduated from Walnut Grove High School in 1953. He attended Southwest Missouri State College where he received a bachelor's degree in education in 1957. He majored in social studies, speech and had minors in music and military science. He attended ROTC and was commissioned with the rank of 2 ^nd Lieutenant. He did post graduate studies at the University of Missouri, Culver-Stockton College, Missouri State University, and Peabody College for Teachers at Vanderbilt University where he specialized in speech pathology. While Jim was at SMS (now Missouri State University), he was first chair baritone player in the band. He was promoted to director of the ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) band, which played at all the SMS basketball games. He also organized and was elected president of the SMS Young Democrats Club his junior and senior years. He also was a member of the SMS debate team where his team won the Missouri College Championship. He was elected as a delegate to the Missouri Democratic Convention.

Jim served in the United States Army and Active Army Reserve for 15 years. He later received his Officer's Branch training in Armor at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He later commanded Company B, 329 ^th Quartermaster Battalion, an Engineering Battalion, and an Artillery Battalion where he served as the Battalion Motor Officer and was the Commander of the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Springfield, MO. He retired with the rank of Captain.

He taught three years in the Walnut Grove, MO Public Schools. He taught social studies, speech, track and music. He taught one year at Steelville, MO Public Schools where he taught social studies and speech therapy. Finally, he was a speech and language pathologist in the Springfield, MO Public Schools for 26 years. Springfield in the largest school district in the state of Missouri. He taught a total of 30 years.

Jim served eight years as mayor and eight years as alderman for a total of 16 years for the City of Walnut Grove, MO. He later served two years as the Civil Defense Director. During his tenure the well in the park was drilled and the sewer system was built. Many other improvements were made.

Jim is most proud of his 37 years as Fire Chief of the Walnut Grove Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department. After serving as the city fire chief, he organized the department in 1965. The rural department had only a single brush buggy fire truck when it first started and the city had one pumper. In 1965 the two departments merged. The department became a tax-supported Fire Protection District in 1988. In 2001 it had four fire stations. 20 fire and rescue trucks, it had emergency medical services with an MD physician as medical director, had 55 personnel and covered 122 square miles in its district.

Jim has been involved in several emergency response organizations. He was an organizer and charter member of the Greene County Fire Departments Association. The association is made up of all the fire departments in Greene County. He served as president of the association for 18 years and training coordinator for 3 years. He was a member of the Greene County 911 services for the county. He was a Level III University of MO Fire Training Instructor, and instructor in CPR and instructor trainer for the American Heart Association and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT).

Jim was an organizer and first chairman of Senior Citizens Housing board. The board built and managed the construction of senior housing in Walnut Grove. The board now manages the apartments.

He is an organizer and the first president of the new Ozarks Disaster Response Training, Funding Foundation and Community Betterment. This foundation was organized to provide grants for training and equipment to emergency response organizations for homeland security and for community betterment projects for the area.

Jim organized the Walnut Grove Booster Club that did community betterment projects. The club built the Walnut Grove City Park, installed street signs for city streets. Cleaned up the Walnut Grove Cemetery and mowed it for several years. With the fire department, the club put on the annual Old Timers Reunion for several years. It raised the money and bought wearing apparel for the fire department. It bought Messiah songbooks for the All City Church Presentation of Handel's Messiah, which Jim directed.

Jim was a member of the Walnut Grove Alumni and worked and attended all the reunions since graduating. He was the President of the Alumni for the 1970 reunion. He and others worked for restoring the Civil War Canon in front of the school for several years. It was finally approved after an all alumni election. The canon was attached to a Civil War original carriage donated by Wilson Creek Battlefield. It was installed and landscaped in front of the new school building near where it used to be.

Jim loved the Walnut Grove Community and it's people and was a big part of it for over 70 years.

Memorial services will be 2:00PM, Saturday, November 14, 2020 at Wilson-Griffin Funeral Home, Walnut Grove, Missouri. Burial will be held at a later date at Greene Lawn Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations can be made to Disabled American Veterans and may be left at the funeral home.