James J. "Jim" Kew

James J. “Jim” Kew, 67, of Carmel, IN and Longboat Key, FL, passed away December 31, 2019 surrounded by his loving family. Jim was born April 1, 1952 in Long Beach, CA.  He moved to Indiana with his family 25 years ago after spending most of his life in Orange County, CA.

Jim is survived by his wife, Barbara; children, Jeff (Shannon) Kew and Jackie (Matt) Robinson; brother, John McKay; sister, Linda Hayes; step-brother, Rick (Bea) Peterson; brother-in-law, Phil (Harriet) Branstetter; sister-in-law Carol (Bob) Swithers; nieces and nephews, cousins, lifelong friends Dan and Rich, and dear friends who mourn his loss. Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Bill Kew, Shirley and William Peterson; sister, Karalee Potter; step-brothers, Randy and Ron Peterson; and brother-in-law Peter Hayes.

Jim earned a Master of Arts degree from Ball State University with Phi Beta Kappa honors.  He served six years in the United States Army Reserves. Jim was a member of the Conner Society at Conner Prairie, and social member of the Longboat Key Club.

Jim spent his career in hotel management including 20 years with The Walt Disney Company.  Throughout those years, Jim was a foreman in Disneyland, manager at Disneyland hotel, took part in the opening of Walt Disney World (Orlando), and management of the Queen Mary.  He also spent three years at the Las Vegas Hilton.

Throughout an exciting career, Jim could account for dozens of stories with celebrities and their impact on those around them.  He was never short on stories to share including special encounters with Walt Disney, Bob Hope, and original Mouseketeers including Annette Funicello.

Jim put his years of experience towards teaching a new generation of hotel managers.  He was recruited by Ball State University to create their Hospitality program, leading to six years of teaching until retiring in 2012.

Jim had a passion for history and movies.  His collection ranged from historical documentaries, musicals, Westerns, classics, comedies, to every Christmas movie, with an ability to share memorable lines from many of them.   He is remembered for his humor, and effervescent smile.

Five years ago, Jim received the incredible gift of a new lease on life.  As a lung transplant survivor, Jim demonstrated an amazing will to live through his journey.  He was able to see his son get married, walk his daughter down the aisle, and cross off bucket list travel destinations with his wife of 34 years.

Please consider organ donation and make your wishes known to bless other families as we were blessed.  We are grateful to the IU Methodist lung transplant team, the Methodist 7North care team, and IU Hospice who took such wonderful care of Jim throughout this journey.

Funeral service will be at 11:00AM Saturday, January 11 at Flanner Buchanan-Oaklawn Memorial Gardens, Conner Suite. Family and friends are invited to visit from 4:00 – 7:30PM Friday, January 10 and from 10:00-11:00AM on Saturday, prior to the service.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to IU Health Foundation: Lung Transplant – 7735 (iuhealth.org/foundation); or Indiana Donor Network Foundation at 3760 Guion Road, Indianapolis, IN 46222; or IU Health Hospice, Attn: Methodist Foundation, 1800 North Capitol Avenue, PO Box 7168, Indianapolis, IN 46207-7168.  We would appreciate donations being noted with “In Memory of Jim Kew”.