Obituary:

 

Jim was born in St. Paul and grew up in Afton, Minnesota. He graduated from Stillwater High School in 1989. After high school, he attended the University of Minnesota, where he took his time—seven years, to be exact—to earn his civil engineering degree. During his time at the U, Jim met the love of his life, Amy (Saffel). After carpooling to the U, they began dating and were married in August of 2000. Initially living in Woodbury together, they moved to Hudson in 2002 and fell in love with the Hudson community.

 

Following graduation, as a registered Professional Engineer in Minnesota, Jim built a career in the engineering field working at SEH, the University of Minnesota CTS, Hancock Concrete and most recently Cemstone. He left his mark on the transportation industry and loved connecting with people in his field. His co-workers, colleagues and customers became true friends.

 

Jim enjoyed sports of all kinds, cheering on the Stillwater Ponies, Minnesota Gophers, Vikings, and Gustavus Gusties. None of those, however, exceeded his love and passion for the Hudson Raiders. Jim spent years coaching his children, Olivia and Oscar, and many Hudson kids in soccer, football, softball, baseball and basketball. One of his greatest joys was supporting kids in whatever they were doing. If he wasn’t watching his own kids compete, he could be found watching other people’s kids, always leaving them with supportive words of encouragement. Jim also loved to provide encouragement to refs with his favorite “not your best call, ref!” advice.

 

Jim’s personality filled a room, and every day was an opportunity for him to show people he loved and appreciated them. Never hesitating to show that love, his hugs were big and long and tight. He wasn’t afraid to kiss your head, nudge you inappropriately or shoot you a text with a quick, to-the-point message of how he loved you and was grateful for you. He loved to share bible verses with others and pictures of beautiful sunrises or sunsets. He loved a good cozy scarf, a round of golf with his kids or buddies, cooking for anyone he could, making others laugh with his daily dad jokes and chatting with neighbors.

 

Above all, Jim’s greatest loves were his family and his black labs. He was thoughtful, romantic, and an exceptional gift-giver. Using his servant’s heart, he did everything he could for them. With their many successes in school and sports, his children filled him to the brim with pride. Beyond their successes, however, were the people they were becoming. He and Amy often talked about how amazed they were by them–kind, respectful, hard-working, funny, humble and loving. Jim’s legacy and values will live on in them, guiding and protecting them always.

 

He will be greatly missed by his wife of nearly 25 years, Amy, his two children, Olivia and Oscar, parents, Henry and Kathy, brother Pat and his fiancée Jane, father-in-law Bruce and girlfriend Linda, sister-and brother-in-law Matt and Alissa O’Hara, nephews and nieces Jacob, Emma, Josh (Karissa), Alex, Lauren and Ruby, his black labs, Riggins and Gus, who were his faithful companions, a host of loving aunts, uncles and cousins, and his many circles of friends. Greeting him in heaven are his mother-in-law, Susan, sister-in-law, Erica, infant twin brothers and his black lab, Axel.

 

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to support Olivia and Oscar’s college education.