James was born on June 27, 1951 in Peoria, a son of James Eugene and Imagene (Vaughn) Terry, Sr. He married Evelyn VanDyke on June 2, 2004 in Peoria. She survives.
He is also survived by his parents of Canton; son, James Terry III of East Peoria; stepdaughters, Nichole Jacoby and Ashley (Cartel) Leggins, all of Peoria; sisters, Linda Seams of Moline, Sharon Barton of New Windsor, Betty Hale of Rock Island and Shirley Davis of Davenport, IA; two grandchildren; nine step grandchildren; and uncles, Harold (Mildred) Ennis of Brimfield, Robert (Nancy) Terry of St. David and Walter (Vicky) Vaughan of Brimfield.
James was a U.S. Army veteran, honorably discharged on March 18, 1971 at Fort Lewis Washington. He was a member of the Disabled American Veterans Pekin Chapter 50.
James enjoyed working on anything he could get his hands on; listening to country music and “the oldies”; fishing; collecting tools and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. memorabilia; watching NASCAR; and spending time with his dog, Fat Butt. He was a very independent man and loved helping veterans.