James S. “Pastor James "Jim" S. Bartz” Bartz

Pastor James “Jim” S. Bartz, 59, of Eau Claire, passed away on Thursday, July 8, 2021, at Spectrum Health Butterworth, Grand Rapids, with his family by his side. A celebration of life service will be held at 11 am on Tuesday, July 13, 2021, at Grace Lutheran Church, 404 Glenlord Rd., St. Joseph, MI. Burial will take place in Caldwell Cemetery, Pipestone Twp. Visitation will be held from 5-8 pm on Monday, July 12, 2021 at Starks & Menchinger Chapel, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Michigan Lutheran High School, 715 E. Marquette Woods Rd., St. Joseph, MI 49085 or Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, 11831 Seminary Dr, Mequon, WI 53092. Jim was born on June 30, 1962, in Sheboygan, WI. He graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in 1988. On November 29, 1991, he married Jayne Gygi in Kiel, WI. Jim served congregations in Kiel and Milwaukee, Wisconsin and in Morenci, Michigan before serving as a world missionary in Malawi, Africa. He has been blessed and privileged to serve the members of Grace Lutheran Church in Eau Claire since 2007. Jim did everything in life with purpose and engaged interactions. Most of all, he had a passionate love for God, his family, his friends and the people of the congregations God allowed him to serve. Jim is survived by his parents; Robert and Darlene Bartz; wife of nearly 30 years, Jayne Bartz of Eau Claire; children, David (Amy) Bartz of Benton Harbor; Rebekah (Nate) Rosenbaum of Benton Harbor; Sarah Bartz of Shorewood, WI and Elizabeth “Lucy” Bartz of Grenada, West Indies; grandsons, Bryce and Samuel Bartz; sister, Elizabeth Bartz of St. Joseph and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brother, Lt. Col. Paul Bartz and sister, Debbi Wright.