James Strand

James E. Strand, 80, of Mesa, AZ passed away November 17, 2020. He was born on June 25th, 1940 to Earl D. and Winnifred Strand at his grandmother’s house in Breckenridge, MN. He grew up in Milan and Appleton, MN. He attended colleges in Minnesota, Montana and Arizona. He sailed the Great Lakes for one (1) season and worked for the Federal Government for 33 years in various Law Enforcement positions throughout the United States, mainly on the US-Mexican border. He worked for the US Forest Service in Montana; was with the US Border Patrol in California; and served with US Customs as a Customs Agent, Customs Inspector, Port Director, Operations Officer, Special Agent, Resident Agent, and Special Agent in Charge. He served with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as a Special Agent and Group Supervisor. He married the love of his life, Kathryn (Kay) Kearney of Benson, MN. They have six (6) children, Sherri Stack (John) of CA; Kari Vutipadadorn (Chana) of Gilbert, AZ; Paul Strand (Sunart) of Mesa, AZ; Peder Strand (Kathy) of Avondale, AZ; Patrick Strand (Nuttha) of Mesa, AZ; and Juli Burns (Eddie) of Rockwall, TX. He has 11 grandchildren and 1 great grandson. He was preceded in death by his Parents and older brother David. He is survived by his two (2) younger brothers Charles of Miles City, MT and Paul of Louisville, KY. He retired in North Dakota in 1993 and moved back to Arizona where he opened a Private Investigative business, taught Spanish at a Lutheran school in Mesa, AZ, and worked for National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). He was a member of Calvary Lutheran Church in Chandler, AZ.