Obituary of James R Bender

The world lost an amazing man on Saturday, October 26th, 2024. James "Jim" Bender, 74, was a talented upholsterer, learning from the family business and then serving the local community for decades with his own business, Actual Artisan. An enigmatic bass player, he played with multiple bands across the area and the country, including Rush Hour, King Curtis & The Corvettes, Dreamcatcher, Fussbudgit, and many more! His talents even took him to Los Angeles, where he made lifelong friendships, and served elite clients like David Lee Roth. Jim was raised and lived most of his life in Endicott, graduating from Union-Endicott High School in 1968. Jim was a loving husband, finding his true love and soulmate in Sherry Bender, his wife of 25 years. He was blessed to be a father, grandfather, step-father, and "Hon". He is survived by his children Jason Bender, Jesse Bender (Emily Bender), Trevor Bender (Kim Bender), and Jayme Bender (Kyle Whitmarsh); step-children Becky Barrett (Ron Barrett), Lori Hurley (Bob Hurley), and Ernie Rommel; grandchildren Kyle, Kailey, Lydia, Leif, Natalie, Ava, Olivia, Aiden, Jarett, and Nikolas; brother Edward Bender, Jr.; sister Laura Vandervort; Aunt Shirley Bender and Aunt Gloria Arnold; and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. Jim joins his mother Ada Bender, father Edward Bender, sister Gloria Bender, daughter-in-law Penny Gleason Benedict, and brothers-in-law Carl Vandervort, Chuck Andreas, and Charles Matthews in life everlasting. A very special thank you to Julie Brown, our guardian angel and beautiful niece, for all her extra loving care and support for us over the years. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that all donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association in memory of Jim Bender. www.alz.org