James “Jim” Lewis Dunn, 81, of Hesston, Kan., died Feb. 13, 2023. He was born Dec. 3, 1941, in McPherson, Kan., to Jasper and Linda (Ewy) Dunn. 

Throughout his adult life, Jim had two callings: pastor and a farmer. One Sunday while a student at Bethel College, studying industrial arts and Bible and religion, he agreed to preach at the local African Methodist Episcopal Church. A congregational leader introduced him as “our new preacher,” so his single Sunday preaching gig became a two-year ministry internship. He graduated from Bethel in 1963.

At Bethel he met Ann Suderman, and they married on Aug. 4, 1964. He told her she would be a farmer’s wife, but he also continued to love preaching and the church. Wondering if God was calling him to ministry, he enrolled in Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Ind.

His first full-time pastorate was in Carlock, Ill., from 1967 to 1970. The second was at First Mennonite Church of Champaign, Ill., from 1970 to 1980. In 1980 the family moved to Newton, Kan., where he worked at the General Conference Mennonite Church office for six years and then served as campus pastor at Bethel College for three years. In 1987, Jim and Ann bought a small farm on the outskirts of Hesston, where he raised cattle and wheat. Ultimately, he ran cattle in four counties. 

His next ministry call was as lead pastor at First Mennonite Church of Newton from 1989 to 1992. During this time, he admitted he had engaged in ministerial misconduct while at Champaign. Today we call it abuse. He took responsibility, resigned from First Mennonite and completed a censure and restoration process in Western District Conference. 

He assumed he would never minister again, but Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church of Goessel called him to be their pastor from 1998 to 2004, followed by Burrton Mennonite Church from 2004 to 2015. He continued farming and ranching until 2019, when he and Ann sold their beloved farm to move to Schowalter Villa. He got a diagnosis of cancer in July 2022.

Surviving are his wife, Ann; a son, Michael (Kathy) Neufeld Dunn; two grandchildren; a great-grandson; and three siblings, Kenneth, Donald and Kathy.

He was preceded in death by a son, Jeff; and a sister, Linda Dunn.