Jim was raised in New England and the western suburbs of Chicago. Jim was born the third of nine children to “God Fearing” Irish Catholic parents and attended twelve years of parochial schooling… both key in building his current very ecumenical attitude toward religion. Jim graduated from the University of Iowa and then Northwestern University with an MBA in Finance. Jim worked his way through college as an auto mechanic, later selling his tools to help with grad school expenses. He began his business career in the pulp and paper industry before shifting to Broadcasting where the next 35 years proved to be a period of rapid growth and consolidation. He spent the final 20 years of this period as President/ CEO of several broadcast companies overseeing the merger, acquisition and integration of hundreds of radio stations. Jim and his late wife of 48 years, Jeannie, moved to the East Coast in 2002. They found both St Michaels and Christ Church in 2007. Intent on settling down after a lifetime of moves, Jeannie designed their home, and Jim was the general contractor.