James Thomas Alford

James (Jim) Thomas Alford

March 1948 – April 2023

Jim Alford passed away from heart failure April 3, 2023, just after his 75th birthday. He was born in San Francisco and grew up in Hayward and Castro Valley. Jim was the Hayward High School Farmer mascot (class of 1966). He was an outreach worker for Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco’s Tenderloin after high school and became deeply involved in anti-war organizing. Jim married Barbara Brown in 1969 (died 1973 from cystic fibrosis complications). They moved to Humboldt County in 1970 at the behest of his Draft Board where Jim organized much good trouble. Jim had the option of moving at least 300 miles away or being prosecuted.  

Jim did whatever he could to make money during the early years in Humboldt, ending with management of Katy’s Smokehouse in Trinidad in the 1980s. He tried to start a Farmers Market in Eureka about 1975. He was involved in Humboldt County progressive organizing and worked at the Open Door Clinic as a Vista Volunteer where he and others outfitted a bus as a clinic that served Southern Humboldt County. Jim’s political organizing was reignited when Wesley Chesbro asked Jim to work on his campaign for Arcata City Council in 1974. Jim went on to manage Chesbro’s campaigns for County Supervisor and in 1998 Jim played a key role in helping Wesley Chesbro win election to the California State Senate.  

Tom Hayden spoke in Humboldt County after his 1976 primary for U.S. Senator while organizing the statewide Campaign for Economic Democracy (CED). Jim attended, met others in the organization, and was inspired to organize Humboldt County CED. Jim subsequently ran campaigns for other Humboldt County supervisor races (Eric Hedlund, Alan Katz), McKinleyville Community Services District (Barbara Mendenhall in 1981, others later), an initiative to ban herbicide spraying along county roads, and the Assembly 1984 (Dan Hauser). After helping Eric Hedlund get elected, Jim served as his appointee to the Humboldt County Planning Commission.  

Jim was recruited in 1985 to work for Willie Brown in the Speaker’s Office of Majority Services and moved to Sacramento. Jim's second wife, Barbara Mendenhall (married in 1977), joined him a year later. Jim worked for Majority Services until 2006, frequently going off state payroll and leading numerous campaigns to elect Democrats to the Assembly in the Imperial Valley, San Diego, San Joaquin Valley, Bay Area and North Coast. He also worked on local races in numerous communities. Jim’s specialty was voter registration and getting out the vote. His work made the difference in many close Democratic races. His volunteer and paid voter registration drives throughout the state registered millions of Californians, many of them first time voters. While with the legislature he was instrumental in developing California’s initial plan for responding to a pandemic emergency.  

In 2002 Jim started the field botany program at Sacramento City College and continued at Sac State, earning a B.S. degree. He tutored and mentored younger students and enjoyed working as a student assistant with professors. He attended and presented student posters at annual meetings of the Ecological Society of America. He subsequently held several botanist positions. 

Jim Alford spent his life as a volunteer and paid organizer, political activist, poetry lover, natural history scholar, vegetable, flower and fruit gardener, native plant enthusiast, health tracker, fisherman of almost every variety, cat lover, music fan, movie fan, birder, electronic gamer (conquer the world, build civilization genre), Kings basketball fan, and ongoing community college student - most recently focusing on literature of every era. His neighbors in Sacramento appreciated his prolific native flower garden each year. 

Jim is survived by Barbara Mendenhall, sister and brother-in-law Janet and Vince West and brother Dennis Alford. 

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