Thursday, August 15, 2013
I do believe I was Jim's first employee when he started his own business in 1980 in Stamford. I was a 21 year old engineering student at Norwalk State Technical college and he had come there in search of a draftsman. I was without experience but he gave me a chance and hired me. The office was a small two room set up in the Gurley Building. He would often say "you fly and I'll buy" and I would hike down to the street and get us coffee at a diner. I was on an errand to the post office for him when John Lennon was shot in NYC. When I got back to the office he was visibly shaken and shared that news with me. Funny what you remember. I continued my engineering education during my time there and he often helped me with homework. I remember him as a patient, kind man who really loved to teach about his chosen field. I can't quite remember if his first child had already been born or if she arrived while I was there, but I do remember how proud he was to be a dad! He keep a photo of her on his desk. At Christmas time I gave him a framed poem that I felt expressed his passion for his daughter and he took me to lunch at a very fancy restaurant in Greenwich. He kept the poem on his desk along side her photo. I worked for him for about 1 1/2 years. Business was slow at the time and he couldn't afford to keep me. We didn't really keep in touch but I ran into him at a wedding in 1984 and he came to Norwalk to advise me on a house I had bought around 1985 or so. He refused my offer to pay him for his expertise! I married in 1988 and moved to the midwest but still have lots of family in Norwalk. My brother called me when he saw the obituary. It made me really sad that I hadn't stayed in touch. He truly was a great guy! Life can be short and we never know how much time we have. I am very sorry for the hole this must leave in the life of those who cared about Jim. I count myself among you.
