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James August Witte was born on August 5, 1932 to Elmer and Esther (Nelson) Witte on the Witte family farm at 180th & Maple, east of Elkhorn.  He passed away at the age of 91on March 13,2024 at Louisville Assisted Living.

Jim attended Dist. 28 country school just down the hill from the farmstead.  He graduated from Elkhorn High School in 1949.  Jim worked with his father farming and with dairy cows.  After Jim's father  passed away in September of 1952, he stayed with his mother and continued with farming and cows.  In September of 1953 during the Saturday night dance at the County Fair, he asked Lois Zwiebel to dance.  They were also members of the Douglas County Rural Youth, but hadn't connected there.  They attended many dances at Peony Park and other events with the Rural Youth group.  Jim and Lois were married in the original Bethany Lutheran Church in downtown Elkhorn on January 16, 1955.  They were blessed with five children:  Cheryl, Joyce, Keith, Jayne and LaRee.

Jim and Lois began their life together on the Witte family farm.  In February 1963 they held a farm sale and moved to a farmstead at 159th & West Center Road.  There was a large barn there which became the basis for a successful egg business.  Jim began a firewood business in 1965 and began working at the Continental Can Co. plant in 1966.  When the farm was sold for development in 1972, Jim and Lois purchased 25 acres in Cass County east of Louisville.  Jim retired from the can plant in February of 1998.  Jim continued working with firewood until 2020.   The family raised sheep for many years for 4-H projects and commercial purposes.  Jim & Lois lived there until July 2021when they became residents in the Louisville Assisted Living Facility.

After moving to Cass County, the family joined Christ Lutheran Church where Jim served in various areas of the church.  Jim served on the Dairy Breeders Board in Douglas County and was a 4-H leader for the sheep projects in Cass County.

Family and friends enjoyed Jim's stories of his life growing up and he had an entertaining sense of humor.  For several years Jim took part in the Nebraska Hand Cornhusking Contests.  His picture was on the cover of the Columbus area travel booklet, but not his name.  The picture was also in the Nebraska Life magazine.

Survivors include wife Lois of 69 years and children:  Cheryl Witte of Omaha, Joyce (Mike) Zimmerman of Springfield, Keith (Ramona) Witte of Plattsmouth, Jayne (Don) Kracke of DeWitt, LaRee (Doug) Frank of Wentzville MO; grandchildren Chris Zimmerman of Lincoln, Chad (Kristy) Zimmerman of Springfield, Daniel (Andrea) Witte of Louisville, Nathan (Hayley) Witte of Lees Summit MO, Tyler (Sarah) Kracke of Columbus, Amy (Nate) Workentine of Lincoln, Michael ( Alyssa) Kracke of Martell, Payton Frank and Caroline Frank of Wentzville MO.  There are 15 great-grandchildren and 2 step great-grandchildren.

Jim is preceded in death by his parents Elmer & Esther (Nelson) Witte, brother Erwyn Witte, sister Marjorie (Witte) DeArvil, and niece Michelle (DeArvil) Rana.

A Celebraton of Life service will be held at Christ Lutheran Church, 15616 84th Street, Louisville, NE on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 at 11:00 a.m.  His final resting place will be at Glendale Cemetery.  Visitation will be held on Monday, March 25, 2024 from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. with family greeting friends from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Christ Lutheran Church, there will be an opportunity to share life stories at 7:00 p.m.

Memorials to Christ Lutheran Church or Louisville Rescue Squad.