The greatest dad in the world has left us. James (Jim, Jimbo, Bobo) Bohanon passed away in Norman, Oklahoma on April 12, 2026.
Jim was born June 14, 1941 in Ventura, California to his mom, the marvelous Eva Mehringer. They moved to Perry, Oklahoma when he was in junior high, along with his little sister Shirley after his mom and her friend threw a dart at a map to determine where to open a business. He graduated from Perry High School where he loved sports and was a star basketball player for the Perry Maroons.
Jim received his Bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State University and his Master’s in Social Work from the University of Oklahoma. He retired from the Department of Human Services where he served as Director of Child Welfare for the State of Oklahoma.
Jim spent equal time between Norman, Oklahoma and Los Alamos, New Mexico, and before that Florissant, Colorado, where he could be near his favorite people on earth.
In 1976, on a fateful after work meeting of friends at the Cock-O-The Walk in Oklahoma City, Jim met the love of his life, Sara. Fortunately for all of us, Sara reluctantly agreed to take the place of another friend who couldn’t go. Jim and Sara were married on July 9, 1977. They raised four amazing children: Jay, Jennifer, Chad, and Ashley.
Jim could regale you with endless tales from his youthful misadventures. If you knew him there’s a good chance you’ve heard a few of his stories more than once. His children have a running outline for a book of his life. It includes chapters on topics such as the Milk-Jug convenient store beer heist of 1959, Grandma Evie’s Bridge party ruined by an arrow to the eyeball, the infamous summer working on a wheat harvest, and various shenanigans as the Sigma Epsilon fraternity president that involved a pig in a sorority, as well as other stories not able to be mentioned here because of possible legal liabilities.
One oft repeated family story is of Jim teaching his sons to fish using lead weights rather than hooks because he got tired of constantly having to put his beer down to unhook minnows. The boys were understandably unamused when a passing group of kids wondered if they were trying to catch fish by knocking them out.
Jim was charming and kind to everyone he met. He always saw the best in people. He was also an incredibly patient father. For the thousands of times he threatened to “turn this car around if you yahoos don’t knock it off”, he actually only followed through once or twice. Jim loved a good joke, and wasn’t afraid to repeat it often. His love of a good time and a good story was something he handed down to his children and grandchildren. He also passed down an ample amount of the reckless adventure gene, mostly to the boys, but they’ve managed to grow out of it mostly unscathed.
Jim loved OU sports! He could tell you Barry Switzer’s age (88) quicker than he could tell you his own. He could still beat us all in basketball, pool, and ping-pong. He loved Tai-Chi in the park in Los Alamos and hanging out afterward with granddaughter Sophia at Ruby K’s where they discussed the solution to all the world’s problems. Jim had a wide-ranging love of music, from the blues to Merle Haggard and everything in between. He was especially fond of Merle’s prison songs era. Bobo, as he was affectionately known to his grandkids, cherished his family and created innumerable memories with them. He was a dedicated attendee at all his grandkids’ activities. He was their biggest fan. Above everything else, Jim loved his family.
He is survived by his wonderful wife Sara, his beloved children, son Jay and wife Kelli Bohanon of Evergreen, Colorado, son Chad and wife Beth Bohanon of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, daughter Ashley and husband Chris Mamula of Los Alamos, New Mexico and grandchildren Christian and wife Bailey, Johnny, Sophia, Jaden, Sydney, and Gabe. His sister Shirley and husband Rick Mehringer of Auburn, California survive him. Jim is preceded in death by his mother, Eva, and his daughter Jennifer.
Our captain, our bulwark has gone from us for a little while, and our hearts are broken until we see each other again. We are endlessly proud of the father you were and will always be.