James Lytle

Lytle , James M. Paw Paw, MI James M. (Jim) Lytle, 82, passed away on Friday, November 5 in Paw Paw, MI. Jim was preceded in death by Katherine Lytle, wife of 46 years, and parents William and Mary Lytle. He is survived by children Mark (Traci) Lytle, David Lytle and Susan Lytle. Also by grandchildren Amanda Conlon (nee Lytle), Eric Lytle and Madeline Lytle and three great-grandchildren; also his companion of the last 10 years, Phyllis Mandigo. Jim enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1957 rising to the rank of Chief Petty Officer before being honorably discharged in 1967. He then worked in a variety of different educational roles designing curriculum for various correspondence courses, most recently at International Correspondence School where he retired as Vice President of Curriculum development in 2002. In 1982, while working at Heath Company, Jim led a project team that designed a new to the world educational robot – HERO. This achievement attracted significant attention resulting in Jim and HERO being featured on numerous television news programs and eventually leading Jim to testify before Congress. Jim was known for his sense of humor and endless quest to learn. His involvement in education extended through retirement where he tutored elementary school students and served as a board member for a local charter school. He also volunteered his time toward other civic causes and was part of the St. Mark's Episcopal church family for 10 years. His hobbies included cycling, electronics, computers and photography. He will be greatly missed. A celebration of life will be scheduled in the future. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations in Jim's name can be made to Hospice of Southwest Michigan.