Obituary of Jamie A Girard

Jamie A Girard 4/21/1947-6/14/2016 Jamie A Girard passed away at the age of 69 on June 14, 2016. Even though he suffered with extreme debilitating rheumatoid arthritis for more than 30 years, he was diagnosed with cancer and died less than 2 weeks later. Jamie was born to Anna Mae Girard(Annee) in San Jose CA, and almost immediately after his birth he and his mother returned to her hometown of Ladysmith WI. As a child and young adult, Jamie also lived in Beloit WI and South Beloit IL. In 1976 Jamie relocated to Rockford IL where he was the Art Director at the local NBC affiliate WTVO. Then in 1998 Jamie, his wife and son relocated to Tucson AZ where his arthritis symptoms clearly benefited from the "dry heat". Jamie thrived in the desert and spent much of his time drawing, painting and photographing southwest desert or national park scenes, ancient ruins, monuments and most of all the San Xavier Mission. Jamie's obsession with drawing started at the age of 3 and other interests over the years included volunteering at the Rockford BMX bicycle race track, competing in snow sculpting events, building bikes, designing greeting cards, gold digging, website design, and renovating old vehicles (Willys Jeep and Land Rover). He enjoyed nothing more than taking long drives in the desert south of Tucson where he often panned for gold or took photos for international photo contests. He had a sense of humor one could only imagine and he even tried his hand at standup comedy. He was hilarious beyond words and artistically brilliant. Jamie was a lover and collector of anything related to Harry Potter, and acted worse than a child while visiting Harry Potter World at Universal Studios Orlando with his family in June of 2015. Survived by his wife Michelyn Girard, children Christian Girard and his wife Alicia, Cassidy Girard Catron and her husband Bill and Michael Girard, and grandchildren Kelsey, Hanna and Abby. Predeceased by his mother Anna Mae Girard. A celebration of life was held at Jamie's home in Tucson on July 10, 2016 with close friends and family in attendance, and art work displayed.