Jim has steadily honed his fundraising and management skills for nonprofit organizations in a career that began in the 1970s. Following an extended tour of combat duty in Vietnam as a member of the 5th Special Forces Group, the Green Berets (Airborne), Jim created an Outward Bound-style program wherein returning Vietnam veterans worked with juvenile delinquents. He successfully led the Providence Program (working with juvenile offenders) which ultimately became a U.S. Justice Department - National Exemplary Program.
While teaching anthropology and sociology on the university level, Jim consulted frequently on issues regarding fundraising organizational development and strategic planning. Working as Executive Vice President for a national firm in New Jersey, Jim provided counsel for a number of nonprofit organizations on various fundraising initiatives.
Jim formerly served as Executive Director of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (New York City) as well as the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Foundation. For more than 30 years he has provided fundraising direction for educational institutions, religious organizations, theaters, hospitals, social service organizations, and many other nonprofit groups. In addition to fundraising, he consults frequently on issues regarding organizational development, leadership, and strategic planning.
Jim earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in anthropology and sociology from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. He and his wife Sharon, who have been married for many years, have five children and eight grandchildren. In his free time Jim has coached youth soccer, loves sailing, and studying history.