James A. Webb

James Arthur Webb passed into the presence of his Lord on January 19th, at 85 years of age. 

He, and his identical twin brother, Gerald Edgar, were born on June 13th, 1933 in Kenora, Ontario to Edgar and Mary (née Hill) Webb. When he was twelve, he spent a year on bedrest recovering from rheumatic fever, and during that time he learned to knit—a hobby he enjoyed for the rest of his life. He had many wonderful memories of his childhood in Kenora; a favourite was playing hockey with his siblings on the rinks his father would make for them in the back yard. His mother loved to cook, and Jim and his twin brother both inherited her natural ability in the kitchen.         

Although he attended church growing up, at the age of 23 he began to have questions about salvation after the sudden deaths of several acquaintances.  It was at a home Bible study he attended that he heard answers regarding the death of Christ and the new birth that were entirely new to him and he was saved. When he moved to Winnipeg shortly after his brother Jerry did, they attended the Gospel Hall together, and there he met Muriel Ronald, who was in nursing school at the time. Jim and Muriel were married in 1961, and moved to Brandon, MB where he worked as a teletype technician for the Canadian Pacific Railroad. Four years later, he became a full-time preacher. His job required that he travel extensively all over the United States and Canada, and be away from home for weeks at a time. However, when he was home, he spent time with his daughters playing table games, reading aloud, and teaching them how to play baseball, skate, and swim. 

As a preacher, Jim is remembered as one of the experts in New Testament Greek, which made him an excellent expositional teacher. His references to hockey, a sport he always enjoyed, as an illustration in his messages made him relatable and “cool” among the teens who heard him. He never took himself too seriously, whenever he returned from a trip—whether it was a bus ride into downtown Zamora or a road trip to Omaha—he always had a funny story or two to tell on himself. While preaching though, he always watched the clock and was famous for promptly ending his messages as soon as the minute hand struck the hour! He travelled to Mexico to preach in various places, and is beloved there, as well as in many small assemblies all around the U.S. and Canada where he faithfully visited and taught.

Jim Webb was predeceased by his parents, and brothers: Donny, Jerry and Neil. He will be lovingly remembered by his four daughters: Colleen (Cyril Smith) of Saskatchewan, Daphne (David Oshust) of Manitoba, Barbara (Paul Thiessen) of Mexico, and Alison (Arvind Sharma) of Ontario, as well as his grandchildren: Jennifer Smith, Kimberly (Tyson Taylor), Erika (Ricky Sawatzky), Brittany (Klaus Matis), Joel Thiessen (Amanda), Jordan Oshust, Nicolas Thiessen, and Konrad Sharma, and four great-grandchildren: Olivia, Boaz, and Walker Taylor, and Gabriel Thiessen. He will also be missed by his sister-in-law, Edith (Jerry Webb, deceased) of Manitoba, as well as his nieces, nephews, and many friends too numerous to list, but not forgotten.

A funeral service in Jim’s memory will be held at River Road Gospel Hall, 350 River Road, Portage la Prairie, MB on February 1st at 1:00 p.m. with refreshments immediately following. Interment will be held at Evergreen Memorial Gardens. Those who so desire may make memorial donations in Jim Webb's name to Union Gospel Mission, PO Box 1073 STN Main, Winnipeg, MB R3C 2X4.

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