James "Jim" Leroy Erickson, 80, died on Christmas Eve in Tacoma from a rare cancer. Born May 1944 in Williston ND to Leroy and Helen, he would later graduate from Williston HS, class of '62, and then from UND, earning a PhB in Journalism. Jim drove his 1968 AMX out west to Washington to take a reporting job for the Suburban Times. In June 1969 he married his wife Pamela.

In the 70's & 80's, Jim was a staff writer for the Tacoma News Tribune. His columns and stories were often humorous and he earned a reputation for pithy slogans and puns. While with the Tribune, he covered the story-of-a-lifetime with the May 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, then traveling with President Carter to survey the destruction. Jim later reprised the experience into a 2020 book titled: "Memories of Mount St. Helens". He also helped raise two children with his lovely wife, and was an avid outdoorsman, climbing Rainier and most of the Cascade volcanoes.

In the 90's and 2000's he worked in state government (Energy Office, OSPI), before retiring and baking Fisher Scones for nearly 20 more years. In 2023 he published an historic book chronicling the Fisher family and Scones.

Survivors include wife, Pamela, children Gregg and Kay, sister Shirley. Donations in Jim's memory go to the Mount St. Helens Institute. A memorial will be held on March 29th at Mount Cross Lutheran Church