James King | Passages

Published 2:21 pm Friday, July 19, 2013

EAST WENATCHEE — James R. (Doc) King, World War II pilot, veterinarian, and rancher, died June 22. He was 91.

Doc was born on Oct. 15, 1921 in White Butte, S.D. In 1923, his parents, Ward and Ella King, relocated with other family members to Kingston, where they purchased a 160-acre stump ranch.

At 19, he enlisted in the Army Air Force and was sworn in as aviator cadet on March 11, 1942. He flew the C-47 Dakota and, during his military career, he flew more than 1,000 combat hours. He dropped troops at St. Mere Eglise on D-Day and Nijmegen during Operation Market Garden.

He and Dorothy Randolph of St. Louis, Mo., married in fall 1945. He graduated from the WSU School of Veterinary Medicine in 1950 and opened a practice in Poulsbo. He practiced in Poulsbo for 32 years, then retired to operate a part-time veterinary practice in Chelan.

A remembrance will be held at a later date. Visit his online tribute at www.HeritageMemorialChapel.com.

— Family of James R. (Doc) King