James Mathews Obituary

James Grant Mathews, age 88, of Riverside, Brookfield and Hines, IL passed away peacefully on December 30, 2012, the day after his 88th birthday. James served in the Merchant Marines and U.S. Army. Jim (or Jimmy as he was known to his friends), was known for regaling those around him with dramatic and, at times, creatively spun tales from his early times of being a kid on the city's far northwest side, his auto shop and eccentric business colleagues, and from his wild days and nights as a taxi driver on the morally flexible streets of Chicago in the 40's and 50's. Jim's father joked that he had nine lives as his stories of close calls with infamous Chicago characters and lucky endings on the streets and overseas during wartime were too numerous to count. Jim was stubborn and proud and lived his life on his own terms, no matter the cost, up until the end. Tellingly, he was a man who signed up for the Merchant Marines in World War II without knowing how to swim. He stuck around the war for a second stint, this time in the United States Army and found great solace and friendship in his later years in men like him that knew those war stories intimately themselves. Jim had a soft spot for all animals and was beloved by many a dog with an upset stomach but a joyous disposition at family meals. He was a firebrand blue collar democrat with a fierce political tongue, a man with a sharp mind for numbers and perfect recall of the city's grid system, an indefatigable walker recognized throughout his community, a smart cookie who said more than once that his biggest regret was having to turn down a school scholarship in the post-depression years, and was a warm and tender grandpa who called himself a friend first and foremost to his grandchildren. Jim was a complex character whose warm voice and presence will be sorely missed. James was born in Chicago to Stanley and Margaret Mathews on December 29, 1924. He is preceded in death by his parents, Stanley and Margaret, and siblings Marjorie Ostrowski, Virginia Jensen, Donald Mathews, and Arlaine Cwick. Father of the late Bonnie McNamara and Caryl (Robert) Hodgdon, doting grandfather of Edward (Aziah) McNamara, Elizabeth (Brian) Donovan, Dylan (Carrie) Hodgdon, and Britt Hodgdon, and affectionate great-grandfather to Brendan, Sean, and Maive Donovan, Christopher McNamara, and Shayla and Kaylin Hodgdon. A memorial luncheon will be held for friends and family on January 26 at 11am at Sawa's Old Warsaw, 9200 W. Cermak, in Broadview, Illinois. Please join us to share a meal and recount stories. In Lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, Kansas 66675. Arrangements by Kopicki's Funeral Home, Cremation Funeral Directors Crematory of Berwyn, 708-788-7775 or www.kopicki.net.