Obituary of James Andrew Ruguone

With a heavy heart we want to announce the passing of James A, Ruguone, 63. Jim passed away on December 29th, of cardiac arrest. In the last few years of his life, Jim lost his ability to walk due to spinal stenosis. In his last 14 months, his condition worsened, and he became wheelchair bound and was residing in assisted living home where he lived amongst friends in Tucson, AZ.

Jim was born to parents’ Nello and Lauretta, and he took his first breath on September 25th, 1959. Jim was a determined and diligent student and graduated from Lemont Township High in 1978. He then pursued the fields of Electronics and graduated as an Electronic Technician from De Vry Institute of Technology in 1980. Upon graduation he was offered a job in Silicon Valley, CA where he began a career that he became an undoubtedly thrived and became an expert in.

Despite never being married, Jim lived a very full and vibrant life. He enjoyed traveling and traveled often- from Cancun, Taiwan to all over the United States. When Jim was not working, he spent most of his time pursuing his hobbies and passions for the outdoors. He was an avid golfer, bike rider, and snow skier. He enjoyed photography and often photographed nature and his travels. He also loved competing in bowling leagues with a 260 average. He was a fearless paintball warrior who was successful at capturing flags. Jim was a big music lover and always had the best sound system. He enjoyed listening to a variety of music and he recorded over a thousand hours of music on his reel-to-reel tape deck. As many also know, Jim was passionate about muscle cars. Some of his favorite cars he owned were a ’69 Cougar XR7 and a ’72 Dodge Demon.

Jim was always surrounded by very close friends that he could always count on. He loved being able to work on cars and golf with his friends. He would always go out of his way to provide the best Christmas for his niece, Cristina, and nephews, Joshua, and Nicholas. Nothing gave Jim more joy than being able to help and give to others.

We will miss him dearly.

Jim is survived by brothers Glenn Ruguone, David Ruguone, sister-in-law Raquel Martins Ruguone, niece Cristina Martins Ruguone, and nephews Joshua Ruguone and Nicholas Ruguone. He is predeceased by Nello R. Ruguone (‘85), Lauretta Ferry Ruguone (‘07), Daniel J. Ruguone (‘83).

Services will be held at Picture Rocks Redemptorist Renewal Center (7101 W Picture Rocks Rd, Tucson, AZ) on April 29th at 11:00 a.m