James Arthur Bren, 71, of Ponderay, ID, formerly of Thief River Falls, passed away in Coeur d’Alene, ID, on November 26, 2019.
A memorial service to honor James Bren was held on Saturday, July 11, 2020 at Bethlehem Church of New Solum Cemetery, New Solum Township. Military honors were provided by the Thief River Falls Veterans of Foreign Wars Honor Guard, Post 2793.
Jim was born to Raymond and Clarice (Olson) Bren on January 4, 1948 in Thief River Falls. He graduated from Lincoln High School in 1966. Jim enlisted in the United States Air Force and served from 1967-1971 as a fuel specialist with tours in Vietnam and Thailand. Upon his return to the US, he was stationed at Grand Forks Air Force Base until his honorable discharge in 1971.
After being discharged from the Air Force, Jim married Jean Kraemer. They had two daughters, Tania and Lisa. At that time, Jim worked for the Minnesota State Highway Patrol as a dispatcher. Jim and Jean went their separate ways and Jim went on to do many different things. His love for animals brought him to Wisconsin where he worked at Sweet Medicine Farm. Later in life he settled in Spirit Lake, ID, where he started his own business transporting horses across the country. Jim had a deep love of horses and spent much of his life caring for them, training them and transporting them.
Jim is survived by his daughters, Tania (Matt) Christiansen of East Grand Forks and Lisa (Matt) Berglund of Grand Forks; seven grandchildren: Max, Anna, Jack and Sara Christiansen and Alexander, Jacob, and Owen Berglund; his siblings: Carol (Bart) Dunn of Hackensack, Mary (Dennis) Johnson of Prior Lake, Donald Bren of Thief River Falls and Joel Bren of Thief River Falls; and many nieces and nephews. He is also survived by his long-time companion, Sandi Fox-Borja, and her daughter, Samantha, whom they raised together
James was preceded in death by his parents, Raymond and Clarice Bren.