He was stationed in Corpus Christi and attained the rank of Aviation Structural Mechanic (2E5) Petty Officer 2nd Class. He was proud to receive a letter of commendation from the Commanding Officer, Naval Air Technical Training Center in Tennessee for attaining the highest scholastic average in his class (62-26) in the Aviation Structural Mechanic Course, Class A. After the training, Jimmy rose to a level of responsibility where work conducted could not leave without his signature of approval.

Following his Honorable Discharge from the Navy, Jimmy began work as an assistant manager at a J.B. White clothing store in Nacogdoches. He then opened another store in Anahuac as the Manager. Following that, he moved to Columbus in 1967 to open another J.B. White store. In 1978, he married his wife Randa and got “two teens and a 4th grader” in the package! One year later they welcomed daughter Stephanie.

In 1983, he bought the old Seymour Lumber Company, and it became Simmons Lumber Company and True Value Hardware Store. In 2000, he sold the store to AL&M and retired. He and Randa enjoyed dozens of cruises and road trips. He liked to snow ski, fish, hunt, watch football and westerns, and especially enjoyed taking their covered pontoon boat out for overnight cruises on the lake. His pride and joy were his grandchildren - Shea Anne and Payne, and his step-grandchildren James (and Jen) and Mollie (and Chris), who gave him 5 awesome little great-grandchildren.

Upon moving to Columbus, Jimmy was highly active in the community. He proudly served as President of the Lions Club (a 50+ year member) and was the 2018 recipient of the Melvin Jones Fellow award for dedicated humanitarian services and the recipient of the Jack Wiech Fellow award for dedicated service to the children of the Texas Lions Camp. Jimmy was also President of the Chamber of Commerce, was Chairman of the Board of the Columbus Community Hospital and had served on the original Board of Crime Stoppers.

He was very involved in the Magnolia Homes Tour and played the part of 3-Legged Willie in the Court Oak reenactment. He also played Mr. South Carolina in the play 1776. As a member of the First Baptist Church, he taught boy’s and men’s Sunday School classes and volunteered his skills to build the Family Life Center as well as repair a church in Mexico. He donated his time to transport the foundational steel for the first Habitat for Humanity House in Columbus as well as sponsored many Little League teams over the years.

Jimmy is survived by his wife, Randa and their daughter, Stephanie Rainosek (and Perry), their children Shea Anne and Payne Rainosek, stepson John Wegenhoft (and Melissa) and their children James Wegenhoft (and Jen) and Mollie Wegenhoft Manchigiah (and Chris), step-daughters Anna Wegenhoft Gertson (and John) and Randa Wegenhoft. Great-grandchildren are Oliver and Everett Wegenhoft and Caroline, Henry John, and Travis Manchigiah. He is also survived by his younger sister Jean Clark and his youngest brother Gary Simmons. Many nieces and nephews called him Uncle Jay or just plain Jim.

Funeral service is Friday, Jan. 2, 2026 at 11 a.m. at the First Baptist Church in Columbus with Pastor Victor Morrison officiating. Visitation at church will be at 10:30 AM. Burial will follow in Alleyton Cemtery, in Alleyton.

Pallbearers are John Wegenhoft, James Wegenhoft, John Gertson, Perry Rainosek, Payne Rainosek and Allen Simmons. Honorary pallbearers are Bill Harrison, Fred Lawrence, Men’s Sunday School Class, Sam Gonzales, Bubba Kollman, Columbus Lions Club, Tommy Salinas, John Cates, and Calvin Klein.

Memor ials Jimmy chose were First Baptist Church Columbus, 1700 Milam St, Columbus, TX 78934 and Columbus Lions Club, P.O. Box 532, Columbus, TX 78934.

Online condolences may be given at www.hennekefuneralhome. com.