Jim E. Procopio

Jim E. Procopio passed away on March 29, 2025 at the Delaware Hospice Center in Milford.  He was 88.

Jim was the 5th of 8 children born to Sam & Clara Procopio on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation in Bena, Minnesota.  

He joined the Air Force in January 1954 as an aircraft engine mechanic.  Over his military career he was stationed in West Palm Beach, Florida; Chanute AFB, Rantoul, Illinois; Goose Air Base, Labrador; Langley, Virginia; Hunter AB, Savannah, Georgia; Holloman AFB, New Mexico, as well as Dover AFB where he met and married his wife Ruth.  They were married for 64 years before her passing on November 29, 2023.  He was a Vietnam Veteran having served in Laos and Thailand and received the National Defense Service Medal.

Upon his retirement from the military in 1974, he began a nearly 20 year career with the Caesar Rodney School district as a custodian at the high school.  Upon his 2nd retirement in 1991, he and Ruth began the RV life and traveled the country including many summers on the lakes of Minnesota where he enjoyed fishing.  He was also a regular for lunch at the Modern Maturity Center in Dover and faithfully cared for his wife and sister-in-law Dorothy Garrett, who passed away on January 1, 2025. 

In addition to his parents and wife, Jim was predeceased by 2 sisters, Mae and Margaret and 1 brother, Joe.  He is survived by his sister & brother-in-law Maria and Jim Benson, sister Violet Schjenken, brother & sister-in-law Daniel and Gloria Procopio, brother & sister-in-law Roy and Sandy Procopio all in Minnesota, as well as Ruth’s sister Linda Guiswite and caregiver niece Shari Gary, both of Magnolia, and a host of other nieces and nephews.

Services will be at the convenience of the family with interment at the Delaware Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Millsboro.  In lieu of flowers, donations to the Meals on Wheels program 1121 Forrest Avenue, Dover 19904 or Delaware Hospice 100 Patriots Way, Milford 19963  would be appreciated.

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