Remembering a true gentleman.

In that quiet period between Christmas and New Year's Day, I learned that James Peter McNamee had passed away in his Sleep Christmas Eve in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Jim was 84, and while his mind was as sharp asever, his pulmonary system had been slowly deteriorating for the past year. He and Grace ware married for 54 years and had four sons.

Born in Providence in 1917, Jim was a life-long resident of Rhode Island. He graduated from Providence College in 1938 with a B.S. in chemistry. He went to work for U.S. Rubber in Pawtucket in product development and field service, through which he visited paper mills and became interested in paper machine roll covers. When World War II arrived, Jim went to work on the Manhattan Project. He kept the details to himself but was very proud that this work helped end the war sooner. He joined Stowe Woodward in 1961, retiring in 1982. Jim held titles of research manager, director of research, and director of technical services. He continued to consult for many years after retiring.

Jim joined TAPPI in 1965 and within two years published two papers in Tappi, which later became TAPPI JOURNAL. His pioneering efforts on rubber dynamics in a press nip and selective chemical adsorption were standards in the industry. He published papers in all major North American and European journals of his day. He has three patents on roll covers. Jim was an active member of the Fourdrinier Committee (now called the Papermakers Committee) for 25 years, serving as chairman in 1974-1976. He was also active in the Materials and Corrosion Committee and was s member and officer of the Suction Roll Corrosion Subcommittee.

Jim was a dedicated TAPPI volunteer. Ha served as Wet End Operations Seminar chairman for 17 years and co-chaired all four of the Twin Wire Seminars. He was a speaker at the Pressing and Drying Seminar for 13 years. The Paper and Board Division awarded him its Technical Award in 1981 and Leadership and Service Award in 1993. He was elected a TAPPI Fellow in 1984 and received the TAPPI Distinguished Service Award in 1989. Jim was extremely proud of this peer recognition and always wore his award pins at TAPPI functions. He chaired his last Wet End Seminar in 1993 and attended his last Papermakers Conference in 1994 at age 77.

Jim was a true gentleman in every sense of the word. He had the highest integrity and commanded great respect in the industry. It was my great honor to later be asked to be part of his team in Wet End Operations. I shall greatly miss him.