116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Obituaries
The Gazette publishes obituaries on a daily basis. Use the search field above to search for obituaries by name or keyword. Readers can submit an obituary or submit a milestone to The Gazette. The obituary must be submitted before 1 p.m. for publication on thegazette.com at 6 p.m. and in the daily edition the next day, with the exception of obituaries for Sunday publication, which must be submitted by 1 p.m. on Fridays.
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Jim Cram
Jim Cram
Coralville
Jim Cram, 81, of Coralville passed away peacefully on February 23, 2025, with his wife and children by his side.
Jim was born on the family farm in Millersburg, Iowa on November 8, 1943, and was a graduate of the University of Iowa. He married Virginia Burns on June 20, 1970, and together the couple raised their two children, Bill and Kris, and enjoyed nearly 55 years of marriage. They spent most of their years in Vinton and eventually moved to Coralville, where they still reside.
Jim began his career as a CPA at McGladrey. He then worked at The Amana Society, Hawk Bilt, and Teleconnect and was a co-founder of McLeodUSA before retiring.
Jim loved his sports teams and was an avid fan of the Packers, Dodgers, and Hawkeyes. He had the opportunity to see his beloved Packers win Super Bowl XXXI in New Orleans. He also made it a habit of watching the Dodgers play whenever he could, including attending the 2018 World Series Game 3 in Los Angeles. He truly bled Dodger Blue! Additionally, he enjoyed trips to Las Vegas, attending Iowa football and basketball games, NASCAR races, and, most of all, visiting his grandchildren in retirement.
He is survived by his wife Virginia Cram of Coralville, IA, two children Bill (Jen) Cram of Manhattan Beach, CA, and Kris (Scott) Strauch of Kansas City, MO. Jim was blessed with five wonderful grandchildren, Maura, Addy, Megan, Alex, and Zach, whom he loved dearly. Jim is also survived by his sister, Doris Armstrong, three brothers-in-law, four sisters-in-law, and numerous nieces and nephews. Jim was preceded in death by his mother Oma Cram and his siblings Lois Thompson, Katherine Grier, and Charles Cram.
Visitation will be held Saturday, March 15, 2025, from 9:30 to 11:30 AM at Lensing Funeral and Cremation Service, 605 Kirkwood Avenue, Iowa City, where a funeral service will begin at 11:30 AM followed by a luncheon. A private burial will be held at Ridgewood Cemetery in North Liberty.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to CurePSP (PSP.org), which helps those with this condition find a treatment and cure. You can also donate to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (stjude.org) or the Ronald McDonald House (rmhc.org), which are charities that he was a long-time supporter of.
Daily Newsletters