Jim got his start as an EMT back in the early 1980’s, when “you could still get blood on you and not worry about it”. On his first night as an Ambulance EMT, on his very first call, he delivered a baby. “It was like going to a casino for the first time and hitting the big jackpot” he says. “But, nobody likes a rookie with a stork pin on his shirt!”. Later, as a patrolman in the Boston Police Department, he handled two more childbirth calls, delivering the babies before the ambulance arrived, and giving him a “hat trick” for emergency deliveries. When assigned to the motorcycle unit, he escorted presidents and dignitaries from around the world. “The fastest I ever rode was on the motorcade for Prince Charles…those Jaguar limousines really move. I had an old AMF Harley, and could barely keep up…I thought it was going to come apart!”
As a sergeant, Jim was assigned to the Operations Division, where he oversaw call intake and dispatch at Boston 911. He became a nationally certified call handling trainer, and worked on the implementation of Enhanced 911 in Massachusetts, in addition to training outside departments as a consultant for Holdsworth & Associates, a nationally recognized firm. As a lieutenant, he served as a shift commander in Boston’s downtown district, and as a staff member at the Boston Police Academy before retiring in 2003.
Since retiring, Jim has continued his consulting work and has been employed in the private sector. A lifelong skier, in 2007 he realized a childhood dream and became a member of the National Ski Patrol as an Outdoor Emergency Care Technician, volunteering at Sugarbush, Vermont. He has since become an OEC Instructor and trainer. Jim and his wife Cathy are active in the Cape Cod chapter of the Harley Owners Group, and are both members of the MA chapter of the Patriot Guard Riders.
Jim continues to bring his sense of humor whenever he teaches a class, because “trainers who lack a sense of humor, especially about themselves, never get invited back…and they shouldn’t!” Jim is the founder of Fathers Of The Brave, a support organization and charity for the fathers of American military personnel. He is the father of an Army combat medic, a Navy helicopter pilot, and a daughter who, he is convinced, will succeed at whatever she chooses to do “by sheer force of will”.
Jim is available for classes in Massachusetts, and on an occasional basis in Vermont. He may be reached at 508-360-3611 or at jim@fathersofthebrave.org
PDF 
