James Allen Heller, 70, of Owatonna, died Friday, March 16, 2018 at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester. He was born August 18, 1947 in Winona, Minnesota the son of Earl and Betty (Rihs) Heller. He attended school in Winona through the sixth grade and then moved to Owatonna where he graduated from high school in 1965. Following his schooling, he served in the United States Air Force as a crew chief on a fighter. He was proud to have served during the Vietnam War and was honorably discharged on October 11, 1971. After his military service, he began his education at Mankato State and graduated in 1975 with a double major in Business and Law. On October 28, 1972, he married Suzanne Kravetz in Minneapolis. Jim's work career as an adult began in real estate and then Federated Insurance, from which he retired in November, 2006 (but he didn't retire from work). He was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Owatonna, the American Legion and the V.F.W. Jim was passionate about the stock market and was a master of the "calls" and "puts". He also found some time for woodworking and music, especially guitar. He loved his family and was particularly proud of his three granddaughters. He is survived by his wife Suzanne Heller of Owatonna; children Tracie (Mark) Peterson of Winona and TJ Heller of Springfield, OR; siblings, Jack Heller of Duluth, Joal Heller of Winona, Cindy Hendrickson of Texas and Kelli (Chad) Johnson of Lakeville; granddaughters, Hailee, Emilee and Charlee Peterson and sister-in-law, Nancy Kravetz of Rochester. He was preceded in death by his parents, Earl and Betty and his in-laws, John and Lucy Kravetz. Visitation will be at Michaelson Funeral Home on Wednesday, March 21st from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM and at church on Thursday one hour prior to the funeral. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 AM on Thursday, March 22, 2018 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Owatonna with Fr. Stephen Abaukaka officiating. Interment will be in Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis, MN. Memorials are preferred and will be directed to Veterans organizations. Visitation: 03/21/2018 16:00 03/21/2018 19:00 Service: 03/22/2018 10:30