James Andrew Schlesner

You may have called him James, Jimmy, Jim or Poppa — but he was never late for dinner! Son, brother, father, grandfather, uncle and a friend to everyone he met, Poppa never met a “stranger” — he talked to everyone because, well, that’s just who he’s always been! Jim was a wanderer all his life and he lived his life on his own terms. In his own true, “rolling stone fashion” where he laid his head, really, was his home.

      Jim never balked at doing what he felt was necessary to provide for his family’s needs, whether it meant being a car mechanic for his children or doing freelance construction work in Milwaukee.
    
For the last six months Jim had been following his wanderlust, traveling the country in his RV.

      On January 28, 2020, Jim was taken from us while on a hiking adventure in Mesa Verde National Park in Arizona.  

      He is survived by his parents: father, John S. (deceased) and mother, Ella (Hink) Schlesner; spouse Traci Kaltenbaugh; siblings, Jeannie (Barb Kilgust), John (Karen), Janey (Craig Rule), Judi, Jake(Rachel), Stacy (Joel Farnsworth), Steve, Susan,(Guy Trimble), and Sharon; children Shennandoah (Jon Ditter), Yvette (Jay Lehman), Shiloh (Tammie), Jerritt and Aunastasia (Bryn Sitkiewicz); and grandchildren, Ty, Isaac, Kendra, Lyric, Seth, Phineas, Gideon, Harper and Piper.

      A Celebration of Life will be held Monday, March 2, at 3 p.m. at the Oconomowoc Community Center, 220 W. Wisconsin Ave., Oconomowoc, WI 53066. His immediate family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to the friends and family who have provided emotional support and comfort during this trying time.

     In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Yavapai Search and Rescue (www.ycsrt.org/?q=paypal_donate) or The American Red Cross (https://www.redcross.org/donations/ways-to-donate.html) in memory of James A. Schlesner.