GUILDERLAND — James Robert Yohey, a long-time director of Fredendall Funeral Home, died on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. He was 76.

He was born in Pontiac, Michigan, the son of the late William Clayton Yohey and Melva M. Jones Yohey. He lived for a time in Birmingham, Michigan, before his family moved to Guilderland in 1961.

A 1967 graduate of Guilderland High School, he attended the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh for a time before graduating from Simmons Institute of Funeral Service.

He served in the Army National Guard from 1970 to 1976, and served his funeral directing residency at the Tebbutt Funeral Home in Albany before joining his father-in-law, Porter Bidleman, at the Fredendall Funeral Home in Altamont.

He later took over ownership of Fredendall’s, and operated it with his brother-in-law, Mark Burlingame, until 2006, when he sold the business. He retired from funeral directing in 2008.

“An avid golfer,” his family wrote in a tribute, “Jim worked in retirement at pro shops located at Orchard Creek Golf Course in Altamont; Argent Lakes Golf Course in Bluffton, South Carolina; and the Saratoga Spa Golf Course in Saratoga.

“Jim was an active member of the Altamont Reformed Church in Altamont, was a Mason, loved playing softball, and was a devoted fan of the Boston Red Sox and the Detroit Lions.”

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James Robert Yohey is survived by his beloved wife, Barbara A. Bidleman; his daughter, Alissa M. Yohey of Wynantskill; his son, Michael J. Yohey (Sarah) of Fredericksburg, Virginia; and his grandchildren, Aidan, Gavin, and Nolan Templeton, and Logan and Colton Yohey.

He is also survived by his sister, Jean Mattimore (Peter) of Voorheesville; his sister-in-law, Beth Burlingame of Altamont; several nieces and nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews.

His mother-in-law and father-in-law, Alice (Sally) Bidleman and Porter Bidleman, died before him, as did his brother-in-law, Mark Burlingame, and his sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Mary Lou and Al Kisby.

Funeral services will be held in the Altamont Reformed Church at Lincoln Avenue and Jay Street in Altamont on Friday, Nov. 21, at 11 a.m. Relatives and friends are invited, and may call at the church on Thursday, Nov. 20, from 2 to 5 p.m. Interment will be in Prospect Hill Cemetery in Guilderland.

Memorial contributions may be made to the MaryLou Kisby – Elizabeth Severson Scholarship Fund at Guilderland High School, The Guilderland Food Pantry, Community Hospice, ARC, or the Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation.