James Ranger Jr.

James (Jim) Ranger Jr. was born to James Ranger Sr. and Alice Cary Ranger in 1935.  He had two sisters and one brother.

He joined the Air Force when he was 17, after fudging the truth about his age to get in.  He was in the service for five years where he served two tours and saw the world.  While in the Air Force he was a news writer for the Stars and Stripes and traveled with Bob Hope.

Jim married Margaret Ranger, the love of his life, on December 13, 1958.  Their love led to a marriage that would last almost 64 years, of which time they would have five daughters and two sons: Melody Anding (Husband Bill), James Ranger III (Wife Lydia), Margaret Dearmon (Husband Doyle), Mary Gunsolus (Husband John), Kathleen Sullivan (Husband Ron), Rhonda Cox (Husband Audie), Justin Vik (Wife Jessica).  Jim and Margaret were blessed by God with thirty grandchildren and forty great-grandchildren.

He was called into ministry February of 1959.  From there Jim and Margaret started pastoring a small country church in West Branch, Michigan; then pioneered a church in St. Paul Minnesota, where they started with nothing but ended up building a wonderful congregation and new building; then Columbus Mississippi; then Hot Springs, Arkansas, where they built a beautiful new church; and then lastly, they returned to Columbus Mississippi where they concluded their pastoral ministry of church congregations.

However, that was not the end of Jim’s pastoring, loving, helping, counseling people as he continued to shepherd people throughout his life, which included his and Margaret’s extensive evangelism, sharing the love and power of the Kingdom of God, all across the US, touching every state in the Union, except for four states.

Jim also served in mission’s work in Haiti and Jamaica, and in Mexico, as well as on Indian reservations in Nevada and in Minnesota.   He served on the National Board for the Pentecostal Church of God.

Even in Jim’s final years he and Margaret served their fellow neighbors in the retirement center as pastors as they met with them weekly for services where this small congregation was well loved, cared for, and shepherded.  At Jim’s last “assignment” on earth he was also very involved in serving those he cared for by bringing food to them monthly.  Shepherd to the end!

Jim Ranger’s legacy is great!  Part of that legacy is his family who he raised to love God and his Son Jesus deeply and genuinely, and also to love everyone unconditionally…especially the last, the lost, and the least.  Also, part of his legacy can be summed up in the word “restoration”, for Jim experienced firsthand that God takes broken people and redeems their lives, for he had certainly been broken and restored in his life.  One of the last things he told his family before he went Home, was, “Never stop telling my story for it is a story of redemption and restoration, a story of how Jesus keeps on restoring broken lives, makes them better than new in order to bring glory to God and also to restore other broken people.”

A visitation will be from 1-3 pm Friday, October 8, 2021 at Healing Hands Community Church.

A Celebration of Life for James Ranger Jr. will follow the visitation at on October 8, 2021 Healing Hands Community Church, Truman, Ark. @ 3:00PM with Pastor Anthony Patterson officiating. Wearing a mask is strongly recommended please. Also, in lieu of flowers if you would like to donate to mission’s efforts near to Jim’s heart you can do so through Healing Hands Community Church by texting the word “give” to 833-982-2046, then give to “Ranger Memorial Fund".