James Pollock

James Keith (Jim) Pollock, 59, passed away peacefully in Des Moines on April 19, 2012, due to complications from chemotherapy treatment for cancer.

He was born to Keith and Viola (Miller) Pollock on August 14, 1952, in Marshalltown, and grew up in State Center.

He is survived by his wife Nola Hanson, whom he married on November 18, 1979; their three children: Travis, Hollis and Quinn Hanson-Pollock; and his sisters, Jan (Greg) Borden and Judy Hilgenberg. The family lived on Nola’s family farm, which has been in the family since 1856, near Mingo, Iowa.

Jim graduated from Iowa State University in 1974, with a degree in English and a minor in journalism. He dedicated 37 years of his life to journalism, working as an assistant editor at World Book Encyclopedia, as the sports editor of the Marshalltown Times-Republican, as a reporter and feature writer for 20 years at The Des Moines Register, and as an editor at Meredith Corp., before spending the final eight years of his life as the managing editor and then editor of the Business Record in Des Moines.

Jim was heralded in the Des Moines business community for his writing and for his weekly column, “Transitions,” in which he delivered his witty, refreshing commentary about life and business.

He was a man who never stopped learning, and a man of many diverse passions. He loved the outdoors, worked hard on the farm, rode his bike religiously on the Chichaqua Valley Trail, took an interest in photography, and was a skilled woodworker, a trait passed down to him by his father.

He worked hard, harder than most. But he never dreamed of retiring, because he loved the job that allowed him to satisfy his intense desire to keep learning.

But his greatest passion was always his family. Whether it was attending his children’s sporting events, attending plays and speech competitions, or having a genuine interest in his daughter’s accounting degree, he always put his family's needs and interests before his own. Always. Even at the very end.

For a man who never bragged, who spoke softly with so few words, it was his actions and thousands of written words that said so much. He will be missed by so many more than he would ever have expected.

Visitation is on Sunday from 4 to 7 p.m., at Lutheran Church of the Cross, 1701 Eighth Street SW, Altoona. The funeral service is set for Monday at 1 p.m. at the church, with burial to follow at Ashton Cemetery.

The family is requesting that any donations in honor of Jim be made to one of three options: Iowa Public Radio, the Ashton Cemetery Association, or the Polk County Conservation Board to help maintain the Chichaqua Valley Trail.

Online condolences can be expressed, and links to his writing can be found at www.businessrecord.com/jimpollock

Hamilton’s Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements.

www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com

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