An Inquisitive Mind

To know Jim was to fall deeply in love with him. Just mention his name to anyone who knew him and a smile would appear on their face. One cannot think of him without their heart opening just a bit more. His deep and rich voice would roll around in your heart and warm you. He touched so many lives in such deep ways.

Jim was born on May 1, 1949 in Paw Paw, Michigan. He grew up with a Michigan state trooper for a father. He had one brother, Bob. The family moved around the state a lot, living in nine houses before he started high school. Both his mother and father passed away before Jim took leave of this world.

Jim was always fascinated with structure — a fascination expressed in his love for architecture and the how-to of construction. This practical approach also spilled over into social structures and the study of the human psyche.

Once he was accepted to Michigan State University, Jim faced a dilemma: the school had a wonderful program in architecture, but it also offered a great program in psychology. Charting the structure of the human psyche and getting a handle on his own turbulent feelings had tremendous appeal – and ultimately determined the course of his academic life. He graduated from MSU in 1971 with a degree in psychology.

Unable to find a position in the mental health field, he took a job at the Stow Davis Furniture Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A move to New York City followed, and inspired by its architectural array and the diversity of ethnic groups, Jim realized he was about to begin his real education. He found cosmic humor in the fact that he turned down architecture to obtain a degree in psychology. As he was fond of saying, “You can’t leave yourself behind, no matter where you travel.”

He fell in love with textiles and became a very successful weaver. Having spent many long winters in Michigan, Jim had learned how to ice skate, and in New York he became truly accomplished. One day a co-worker introduced him to Transcendental Meditation, which he later introduced to his brother Bob. In return, his brother introduced him to Silva Mind Control. Their seminars focused on the power of positive thinking and creative visualization. The four-day seminar was geared toward creative problem solving, developing intuition and improving memory.

One day in 1976 Jim decided to attend an introductory Silva lecture. Little did he know that his life was about to undergo a dramatic change. He found himself listening to a presentation given by June Graham and was captivated by this bright, articulate and very beautiful person. June combined a brilliant wit, an encyclopedic memory for research to support her material and a charm that Jim found appealing and disruptive at the same time. He immediately committed to the full workshop. He loved the meditations, and his heretofore silent intuition sprang into action. After only three meditations, he began hearing in his head what June was about to say before she said it out loud. As their relationship grew, they were having the same dreams. Shortly thereafter, Jim started working with June, and by the next fall they were living and loving together as well. Despite a twenty-four year age difference, they both realized that there was something profoundly special between them.

Let Go & Live

In 1981, Jim and June founded the Let Go & Live Institute Ltd., a nonprofit educational organization. Their dream was to provide people with clear and practical methods for finding the inner resources to celebrate life through all kinds of challenges. With June by his side working in tandem, they presented over 300 two-day seminars, over 500 three-hour lectures and worked with over 7000 individuals.

They were married in 1982. By the time their lives ended, they had known and loved one another for 30-plus years. They ice skated in Rockefeller Plaza, traveled all over the world and finally found a home in Redstone and then Salida, Colorado.

They were inseparable. Jim and June studied together, meditated together and read together. They both became ministers and spread their love by marrying other people. They were counselors/life coaches and helped many people get through hard times. They also wrote books together: Let Go and Live and No Bad Feelings!

Their lives together and individually were about consciousness and clarity.

Jim and June walked their walk, and what they preached they lived. And, of course they made angels together. Their “Earth Angel” sculptures were filled with the same kind of love they shared with everyone else.

After June died in 2007, Jim was adrift and experienced a stroke just a few months later. He often said, “Now this is a lesson that was difficult, but June was with me all the way and kept telling me, ‘This is not your time yet — you have to stay here and finish some things.'” He began working with inmates at the prison in Salida, teaching them English and creative writing, and touching their lives with his very special brand of love and care. He began telling stories about how the work impacted their lives as well as his own.

On December 1, 2009, James Floyd Spencer died. He was with his beloved June once again.

We who are left will miss him more than words can say. He touched us all so deeply and tenderly. We were all so blessed to have known him, and will carry him in our hearts always.

How blessed we all are to have Jim and June tucked deeply in our hearts.

The Jim Spencer GED Memorial Fund

(retyped from the original announcement)

In 2008, Jim was a co-founder of the GED program in the Chaffee County Detention Center. Jim brought in a passion for tutoring, utilizing his experience and personal commitment to inmates.

Jim’s interest went beyond the teaching of GED. He also wanted his “students” to focus on the changes necessary to find success in life. He cared about each and everyone he came in contact with.

Sadly, on December 1, 2009, Jim died of a heart attack.

This fund was established by friends and family as a way to remember Jim and keep his passion alive.