James Richard Harrison, of Dalton, MA passed away on Sunday, September 15th, at age 81. Born on September 12, 1943 in Torrington, CT, he was the second eldest child of Donald and Jacqueline Harrison. He graduated from Dalton High School (MA) in 1961. Jim then enlisted in the Army where he served on a missile site in Wiesbaden Germany, near Frankfurt, as a Technical Sergeant.

After his time in the service, Jim returned to Dalton to work at E.D. Jones Beloit in the pulp & paper machinery industry. His 33+ year career included traveling the world, often spending extended time on jobs. Jim visited every continent and hundreds of countries and cities, with unimaginable airline mileage.

Jim was married for 47 years to Ann Louise Zaorski of Lanesborough, MA. She passed away on May 22, 2013 at the age of 70.

Jim is survived by sons James Stanley and wife Michelle of Phoenix, AZ, son Jeffery Donald and wife Wendy of Chandler, AZ and adopted son, Matt Snow and wife Tina of NC, and their children, Madeline, Emily and Zachary, and his Harrison siblings, Bruce, Duncan, Sandra, Heather, Keith, Kenneth, Timothy and their spouses and extended families. He was preceded in death by wife Ann, parents, Donald and Jaqueline, and oldest brother Malcom.

A 42-year member of the National Ski Patrol, Jim joined the Brodie Mountain patrol in 1979 and remained there until Brodie closed in 2002. He moved on to the Butternut Ski Patrol remaining there until 2022 when he retired because of health issues. Jim loved skiing and while he worked three days a week at Butternut, on his two days off he went skiing at Jiminy Peak.

Jim was very much an outdoors enthusiast, enjoying hiking, skiing, camping, and whitewater rafting. He was also a lover of classic cars, and hot rods. He loved to work with his hands, and restored, or built many antique/classic/muscle cars from the ground up. Jim was always up for a challenge and had the engineering mindset as a great problem solver.

He was a brother, father, friend & mentor to many, and his legacy will carry on through the lives of everyone that he has touched throughout the years.

In more recent years, Jim and his fiancé Kay LaViola of Savoy, have been spending time continuing his hobbies with his cars, traveling to Florida, and taking trips in a motorhome to Maine and other locations, as well as a recent trip to Arizona to go to the mountains with his boys.

James was cremated after death, according to his wishes. A memorial service will be planned and announced at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in his name to Brigham & Women’s Hospital (supportBWH.org) or the Berkshire Humane Society and mailed to Dery-Foley Funeral Home, 890 E. Main St., Dalton, MA 01226.