Jim Power Dies at 90, Steward of Beaver Creek Water and Governance

The air in the Vail Valley holds a specific kind of quiet in late spring, a thin, crisp stillness that settles over the Gore Range just before the afternoon storms roll in. It’s the same air Jim Power breathed while cycling through the mountain passes, the same air that likely filled his lungs in Playa Del Carmen when he passed away on May 3, 2026. He was 90 years young, and his death marks the end of a life that felt less like a series of corporate milestones and more like a long, deliberate climb up a familiar ridge.

Power wasn’t just a resident of Eagle County; he was woven into its infrastructure. He served on the Beaver Creek Metro District Board, the Eagle County Water Board, and the Beaver Creek Property Owner’s Board, meaning the water that runs through your taps and the roads you drive on were, in part, his responsibility. He understood the mechanics of the place, having started as a civil engineer in Nova Scotia before rising to become President and Chief Operating Officer of Johns-Manville Canada. He didn’t just live here; he helped build the systems that allowed this mountain town to function, moving his family across Canada before landing in Denver in 1981 to join Manville’s Global Senior Executive Leadership team.

There’s a warmth to the way locals remember him, a comfort that comes from knowing someone who led through integrity rather than ego. You can feel it in the stories about his old Vail ski pass, which was laminated and hung in the bar at the Gas House restaurant — a true mountain-town honor that speaks to a figure who valued community over status. He wasn’t the loudest voice in the room, but he was the most consistent, a man who approached life with a “can do” spirit and quiet confidence.

His professional journey was vast, taking him from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, where he was born to Mary Elise Saulnier and James Edward Power, to the executive suites of global manufacturing. He founded companies focused on pipeline coatings, building relationships that spanned continents, yet his greatest joy remained rooted in the simple, sensory pleasures of the valley. He loved skiing Vail and Beaver Creek, attending performances at the Central City Opera House and the Vilar Performing Arts Center, and riding Ride the Rockies with his wife, Jacquelyn “Jackie.”

If you look closely at the history of Beaver Creek, you’ll find Power’s fingerprints on the governance that keeps the resort running smoothly. He cared deeply about the mountain communities that became such an important part of his life, serving not just as a businessman but as a steward of the place. His death leaves a void in the local water board and the metro district, but it also leaves behind a legacy of resilience and humility that is rare in high-level corporate circles.

He is survived by Jackie, his son Patrick James Power, his daughter Stephanie Power Evans, and her husband Paul T. Evans. The obituary notes his devotion to family, but the real measure of Jim Power is found in the quiet moments — the steady presence at a board meeting, the shared laugh on a ski lift, the laminated pass hanging above the beer taps. It’s a reminder that the people who shape a town often do so not with fanfare, but with the steady, unglamorous work of showing up, day after day, year after year.

Outside the Gas House, the wind still picks up off the valley floor, carrying the scent of pine and distant snow, a constant companion to someone who spent a lifetime navigating both boardrooms and mountain passes with equal grace.