James ‘Jim’ Bernard Marron

We are heartbroken, for our beloved brother has left this world. Yet, even in our sorrow, we must lift our voices in joy—for Jim is now with the Lord he served so faithfully.

Jim was born in Sheridan, Wyoming, to Alice (James) and Bernard Marron. He was the eldest of the Marron siblings—a quiet soul, often unnoticed, yet always ready to lend a helping hand. Jim was the best big brother one could hope for, a role that, at times, came with its challenges.

In his younger years, he joined friends in collecting discarded hides, glass bottles, and other odds and ends to earn a few extra coins—often enough to buy another Johnny Cash record. Eventually, he bought a guitar and would play along with Johnny’s music, plunking out the notes with joy and determination.

Jim was a dedicated and dependable worker throughout his life. His varied roles included gas station attendant, mail carrier, fire lookout on Cloud Peak, “gandy dancer” for the CB&Q Railroad, and forester.

He was raised in Sheridan, attended Holy Name School, and graduated from Sheridan High School with the class of 1957. Though he had planned to join the Navy, eye problems prevented him from doing so. Unfazed, Jim enrolled at Sheridan Community College and later transferred to the University of Idaho, where he earned a degree in Animal Forestry. He went on to serve as a Forest Ranger in Northern California for nearly 20 years.

Then came a higher calling. Jim felt drawn to monastic life, and there was never any doubt about where he would go. He joined the Benedictine community at Our Lady of Guadalupe Abbey in Pecos, New Mexico—his home for the next 43 years.

Jim loved the outdoors, a passion rooted in childhood family trips “on top”—up into the Bighorn Mountains. Dad would pitch a tent and fish the streams, Mom would sketch, and the Marron kids would run wild with freedom and wonder. As an adult, Jim often hiked and camped, sometimes waking to snow on his sleeping bag. He crossed the mountains behind the Abbey more than once and even took on the famed trail into the Grand Canyon.

Jim faced struggles, as we all do, but he placed them in God’s hands. Near the Abbey stands a twisted, weather-worn tree growing defiantly through solid rock—a tree Jim referred to often, and lovingly, as “my tree.” Its resilience spoke to him deeply. He saw in it a mirror of his own journey: marked by hardship, shaped by faith, and rooted in something eternal. That tree became a symbol of his life—bent, weathered, but never broken. His connection to it was quiet but profound, much like Jim himself. Words cannot truly capture the quiet, enduring impact he made on the world. We are deeply blessed to have known him.

Jim is preceded in death by his parents, Alice and Bernard Marron; sister Marjorie Arbogast; brothers John and Bob Marron; and nephews Craig Arbogast and Jeffrey Harris. He is survived by his brother Richard Marron of Laramie; sister Jean and husband Lynn Harris of Grain Valley, Missouri; nieces Carol Davis, Jean Arbogast, Kim Ellis and Amy Garner; and a multitude of great and great-great nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the charity of your choice.

A funeral will be held May 30th at the Abbey 16 Guadalupe Lane, Pecos NM .