<\/a>Henry James shows off his leather jacket painted by his uncle, Ivan James, on Friday, Aug. 16, 2019. Ivan James, an Alaska Native artist, was found dead on Aug. 3 at Cope Park. He was a veteran and the artist behind murals still visible at the Juneau Arts & Culture Center. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire)<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Ivan James’ body was found in Gold Creek shortly<\/a> after noon Saturday, Aug. 3, at Cope Park. Lt. Krag Campbell for Juneau Police Department said foul play is not <\/a>suspected<\/a>.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Henry James said it was not unusual for his uncle to be at the park.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “As far as we know, he was just sitting by the creek,” Henry James said.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Ivan James was a Vietnam War veteran from Kake, who came to reside in Juneau. He also served in the National Guard at the time of the 1971 Alaska Airlines crash that killed 111 people aboard the plane that struck a mountain near Juneau.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t [The disaster that taught us to fly safely<\/a>] <\/ins><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The National Guard connection is how Ivan James came to paint designs and murals on the walls and doors of the Juneau Arts & Culture Center, back when it was the Armory.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “I remember as a child in the ’70s, watching him paint that,” Henry James said.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Nancy DeCherney, Executive Director for the Juneau Arts & Humanities Council, said in an interview that over the years Ivan James would occasionally stop by the JACC to visit and to repair the murals.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t