Obituary

James Clayton Carron
1938-2019

James “Jim” Clayton Barron died peacefully January 3, 2019. He was 80.

Jim was born June 3, 1938, to Walter and Helen Barron, of Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. He matriculated at Pennsylvania State University, where he made lifelong friends in the Delta Theta Sigma agricultural fraternity. He received his B.S. in agricultural economics in 1959.

After working in the Cooperative Extension Service and serving in the U.S. Army Reserve, he married Mirriam Hughey. They later adopted son Doug and daughter Jennifer. Jim returned to Penn State and obtained his M.S. and Ph.D. in agricultural economics, finishing in 1968.

Jim brought his family to Washington State University intending to stay three to five years, but he loved it so much he never left. Career highlights included an economic land use study in Hawaii and a two-year assignment creating a master’s degree program at the University of Ghana in Africa. Jim became the program leader for community resource development in Cooperative Extension and served on regional and national committees. He served as chair of the Department of Agricultural Economics from 1990 until his retirement in 1997.

Jim cared for Mirriam at home as she battled progressive supranuclear palsy until her death in 2001. His brother, Roy, also preceded Jim in death.

Jim married Karen Petersen in 2004 and they enjoyed traveling the country together in their RV, meeting new people and old friends and a long, fabulous trip to India.

They continuously hosted several international students in their Pullman home who remain friends. Life was very full and included square dancing, which resulted in him acquiring 135 bolo ties.

Jim loved outdoor activities such as fishing and backpacking with colleagues and boating with the family. Hobbies included wine making, photography, reading and watching sports. In keeping with his wishes to continue to teach, he donated his body to the WSU Willed Body Program. He is survived by wife, Karen; sister, Diana Fredley, of Newport, Wash.; sister, Kathleen Mitchell, of Boulder, Colo.; son, Doug, of Lexington Park, Md.; daughter, Jennifer Price, of Dayton, Wash.; and three grandchildren, Andrew, Hannah and Brendan Price, of Dayton. Jim also leaves behind countless friends throughout the country and the world.

A celebration of life will be held from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in the old library at Gladish Community and Cultural Center in Pullman. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to JimCBarron@gmail.com.

A YouTube channel has also been created for Jim. If you have stories or other things about Jim you wish to share, please pass them on and any other communications to the same email address. Come to the celebration and pick up a memorial bolo tie of your choosing.