Jim Stafford, 1966-2010 & Memorial Service

Jim Stafford, at left, in Lithia Park, Ashland, OR, Shakespeare Festival, with friends, August 2010

Jim Stafford, 1966-2010. He was young, positive, and full of life.  We'll miss you, Jim.  (Clockwise, Jim is at the left, Janet, Maggie, Annie, and Stanley.) Ashland and the Rogue River will never be the same.  with love, Janet and Chris

Here is a letter that I sent out to people who knew Jim.  I know that some of you knew Jim, as well:

Dear friends,

I learned [Thursday] that our Ashland friend and Pasadena City College student Jimmy Stafford  died earlier this week.  Cause of death is unknown.  We do know that Jimmy (1966-2010) was working out in a gym, passed out and died thereafter.

During our week in Ashland Jim was often seen in the company of his friends Annie Tang, Stanley Chao, and Maggie Getova.  (Jim also attended the Oregon Shakespeare Festival with Debra Bronstein and Dustin Hanvey in 2009.)

Jim was a dedicated student in his academic program at Pasadena City College and an important member of the student government.  Once a month he ran a booth at the Pasadena Flea Market. He was always gracious, warm and enthusiastic.

Looking much younger than his years, Jim had recently run marathons for charity, including Team-in-Training's fundraiser for the fight against leukemia and lymphoma. He was planning on running a marathon on Catalina Island in the weeks ahead.   Jim loved the theatre and joined some of us in recent weeks at A Noise Within to see Measure for Measure.

A memorial service is planned for Jim at Ambassador Auditorium, Thursday, November 4, at 11:30 a.m.  The Ambassador Auditorium's location is 131 South St. John Avenue, Pasadena, 91105. All are welcomed to attend.

Pasadena City College's AGS Honor Society has a web page dedicated to Jim: http://agspcc.org/news#954.

I have included a photo of Jim in Ashland with his friends.

Our thoughts are with Jim's family and friends at this time.

--Chris

Christopher McCabe

English Division

Pasadena City College

P.S.  Please be so kind and forward this letter to any other friends of Jim's that you may know.

From left, above, Stanley Chao, Chris McCabe, Maggie Getova, Janet McCabe, Jimmy Stafford, and Annie Tang take on one of the northwest's great rivers--the Rogue.

Stanley, Maggie, Annie, and Jim, Ashland, OR, August 2010

Here is an announcement from Jimmy's family: "A celebration of Jimmy's life will be held on Thursday, November 4th at 11:30 am at Ambassador Auditorium, 131 S. St. John Ave in Pasadena. A reception will follow at Maranatha High School Student Center, located adjacent to the auditorium. A public viewing will take place on Wednesday evening, November 3rd from 3:30-7:30 at Mountain View Mortuary, 2400 N. Fair Oaks Ave in Altadena."