Jim and Maxine both lived in the same Kokomo neighborhood and met each other hanging around the old Fire State #2 on Home Avenue. Maxine's father, J.W. "Bill" Comer, was a fireman there and enjoyed talking with kids of all ages. After graduating from Kokomo H.S., Jim went to work at Continental Steel and Maxine went to Delco, where she remembers working for 65 cents an hour. Jim joined the Navy in 1941 and was in the service until 1946. While stationed in Washington, D.C., he sent for Maxine, and they were married at the U.S. Army Medical Center Chapel on February 7, 1942, by Capt. Gamble. Maxine then worked as a clerk-typist for the U.S. Army until the birth of the couple's first child, who was born in 1944.
Upon their return to Kokomo in 1946, Jim went back to Continental Steel and Maxine stayed home with the baby, first as a "housewife," and later as a "domestic engineer." Later, Jim went to work for the U.S. Postal Service, retiring after more than 31 years' service as both a walking city carrier and a rural carrier on R.R. # 6 and #1. He also drove a motor route for the Kokomo Tribune for over 40 years, which meant approximately 800 stops and starts each day. Maxine has done extensive volunteering for groups such as the Howard County Mental Health Dept. and the Cub Scouts; Jim has played on and/or managed both softball and baseball teams. Both are very active at South Side Christian Church, where Maxine has been a member for more than 72 years, and have volunteered together for programs such as "Meals on Wheels." Jim and Maxine have 3 living children: Brenda (Mrs. Paul) Butler, of Cutler, Indiana; Debi (Mrs. Bob) Wells, of Tampa, Florida; and Steve Givens, of Indianapolis, 7 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren.
A Few Things Jim and Maxine Remember:
- The first car - a Model "A" Ford
- Riding the city bus and streetcars EVERYWHERE
- When The Thing To Do in the evening was walking around Courthouse Square
- The Interurban that ran from town to town; the tracks were right in front of Maxine's childhood home on So. Union St.
- When U.S. 31 was 2 lanes and neither Chrysler nor Delco was there
- Buying season tickets at the "SeaShore" for the whole family as summer vacation
- When families were larger
- When all 4 brothers (Jim had 3; Maxine, 1) were in the service at the same time, representing the Army, Navy, and Air Force
- When families were families who ate meals together at the same table at the same time, and actually played games together
- Paying less for a house than what a new car costs nowadays
James Jerry "Jim" Givens, 10 February 1918 in Howard Co. - 7 August 2003
Wilma Maxine (Comer) Givens, 1920 in Howard Co. -
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