Fifty Years and Counting: Jim & Dara
Missed are the days of playing sports for the Dutchmen, hanging in the cafeteria and courtyard, open gym, and pickup games at St. Dominic’s. Hours were spent cruising around town with friends while listening to Richard Pryor, Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Frampton, and Bad Company on 8-tracks and cassette tapes, all back when gas was about sixty cents.
The past 50 years have been a mix of Dara’s dedicated career and several career adaptations on my part. Our daughters and now our grandchildren have been our greatest gift. Somehow, we have managed a full life since the 1970s, when hair was long, pants were wide, and none of us thought we would be this old.
Dara graduated from Dominican College, received a master’s degree from LIU, and spent 36 years teaching special education and the visually impaired in the South Orangetown Central School District. Along the way, she earned “Special Educator of the Year” while managing students, administrators, parents, and me. She worked with many of our alumni and built relationships with students who continue to reach out today. After retiring, she founded Blink Vision Consulting and currently works part-time at United Cerebral Palsy, Westchester.
After high school, RCC, a semester in London, and some travel, I graduated from Michigan State University, played Division I lacrosse, and survived. I worked for the Bronx District Attorney’s Office and spent ten years with the Orangetown Police Department, assigned to the TPF and sniper team. During this time, I instructed CPR and earned a private helicopter pilot license. Unfortunately, while arresting a drug dealer, I was injured in the line of duty. The same dealer had been previously apprehended by a classmate. Small world, especially in the 1980s, before cell phones, Google and GPS.
After recovering, I started a private investigation agency and spent the next 20 years handling confidential investigations for a wide range of clients. In 2010, I pivoted again, landing a lead investigator role at fortune 200 corporation, conducting fraud and internal ethics investigations, as well as executive protection and security work on five continents. These days, I play a lot of golf, work part-time at a local golf course, and instruct Adult First Aid/CPR/AED for the Red Cross.
I love being married to my homecoming princess, being Dad to our daughters, and Pop-Pop to our grandchildren. Dara treasures her time with family, friends, and the OGs: Nancy Bello, Carol Clifford, Marianne Fairclough, Cathy Plate, and Maureen Keith. Although our class sustained the loss of many friends over the years, we look forward to seeing everyone at this milestone celebration.