As Notre Dame heads into the national championship for the first time in 24 years, Bart and I think of Jim. We became friends at American Cyanamid, when I worked there during the 1970s and 80s. I planned his retirement party, with pleasure, as he was one of the kindest, most charming person I have ever known. We would often plan retirement parties as "roasts" where co-workers would poke a little fun at the retiree. But Jim was such a great guy, we couldn't think of anything to "poke fun" at except his many years of Catholic education. As a gesture of thanks for planning his retirement party, Jim offered my husband Bart (a rabid ND football fan) two tickets to one of the three games for which Jim was eligible to buy, as an alumni. It was the year after the National Championship season, our only trip to South Bend to see a game. The moment Bart walked into the stadium and saw the field for the first time was very emotional. He asked me to look Jim up today as we knew his health had been failing over the last several years. Every year in his Christmas card, he would always make some mention of ND football to Bart. I know Jim will be watching down on the team when they play in the BCS Bowl. When I learned of Jim's passing, I knew we had to make the decision to head to Miami to watch his team capture the national championship. I think his spirit will be with us, and Grace too.
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