Keeping Time

At 98 years old, Jim Phipps is still keeping rhythm. Every Thursday afternoon at Independence Village in Peoria—where he lives—he picks up his saxophone and joins a group of friends to play swing band favorites for the residents. It’s a fitting tradition for a man whose life has always moved to its own steady beat.

Phipps’ story spans nearly a century and several careers, each shaped by his curiosity and love of working with his hands. After serving as a portmaster in the Navy after World War II, he returned to civilian life in 1947 and moved to Peoria to live with his sister. Looking to learn a trade, he enrolled at Bradley Polytechnic Institute (now Bradley University) in the horology (watchmaking) program, where he mastered the delicate work of gears, springs, and precision tools.

Those skills led him to Peoria Jewelry Company, where he set diamonds and engraved jewelry. But after a few years, Phipps felt pulled toward something new. He joined TP&W Railroad—a decision that turned into a 38-year career.

“I like to work with my hands,” he said, “so I did a bit of everything. I worked as a switchman, conductor, and yardmaster.”

Even with a full-time railroad career, Phipps never left behind his love of music. An accomplished musician, he’s performed in the Peoria area for more than 70 years playing saxophone, clarinet, string bass, chromatic harmonica, keyboard, and singing using the moniker Walt James. At a gig in the early 1970s at the Black Angus Steakhouse, he met his wife Helen.

“She was sitting at a table with another couple,” he recalled. “A guy in the band said, ‘Why don’t you ask her to dance?’”

That dance was the beginning of more than 47 years together. “She was the love of my life,” Phipps said. Helen passed away in 2020, but her presence remains deeply felt.

Craftsmanship followed Phipps into his later years as well. Using the same tools he once relied on for jewelry making, he built hundreds of model airplanes—many of them detailed replicas of WWII aircraft. His work even caught the attention of the Peoria Journal Star, which featured him and several of his models in 2005.

Today, while he no longer builds airplanes, Phipps shows no signs of slowing down. When he’s not performing with his Thursday afternoon group, he can often be found browsing on his computer or enjoying a movie from his extensive DVD collection.

After a lifetime of service, creativity, music, and meticulous craft, Jim Phipps is still doing what he’s always done best—staying active and curious, and bringing joy to the people around him.

—Emily Potts