Jim was a wonderful classmate in junior and high school in Glens Falls, NY.  In particular we shared classes in earth science. What a career Jim had following his passion!  RIP, Jim. 

I was saddened to hear this unwelcome news of Jim's death. My wife, Ruth, and I were part of a four couple group of "partners" who went together to buy 90 acres in the Driftless Area of Wisconsin and build a cabin we all used. That part of Wisconsin reminded Jim of his growing up in upstate New York.  His expertise in geology helped us to understand the many facets of this land.  He and Carol were enjoyable and easy to get along with as partners with many questions to resolve.  We have missed them since they moved to East Lansing and were unable to get there as often. 

Tom Seals and Ruth Wene



I am shocked to see the news of Jim's passing, and feel a deep sorrow from heart! A thought of comfort and condolences goes to Carol and the grieving family.

Jim is the best professor and mentor to me, and I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to become one of his students. During the memorable time in Champaign and even within many years after I started to work,  Jim had always given me the greatest encouragement and support to help me develop in a better direction and make me a better person.  

His rigorous academic attitude, humorous personality, and great care for each student, will be forever missed!

Thank you again, Jim. May you rest in peace!

I am so sorry, Carol, to hear of Jim's passing which reached me only on the day of the funeral. It was a privilege to have Jim as a friend and colleague, and to be involved on research together.  I share your loss and know the pain and desolation loving your friend and partner in life.  Try to keep smiling through the tears.
Francis 

Jim joined MSU just after I did. I knew him as Dean and after he stepped down, really enjoyed getting to know him as Jim. He will be missed!

Carol,

My wife Linda and I have been down with a virus and were not able to attend the service for Jim today.  We send our deepest condolences and will keep you and your family in our prayers.  

I truly enjoyed working with Jim while he was Dean of NatSci and I was chair of Plant Biology.  He was indeed a good Dean and a good man.  He will be missed.

Rich and Linda Triemer

Jim and I worked together a lot when he was in Champaign. He was a good scientist and a wonderful colleague. I’m very sad at this news. Carol, I hope you are managing all right, this must be a really tough time for you. 

It was a sad day when I learned Jim has passed away. Just last October, he was talking about doing research. From 1998-2004, I was fortunate to be one of Jim's many students and postdocs. Since then, I have met him at conferences or communicated with him from time to time. Jim was such a great advisor who cared about his people. I feel so lucky to build my career from what I learned from him. 

In the late hot July of 1998, I became a graduate student at Illinois. More than 20 years later, two memories in that summer are still vivid - a sincere welcome smile of a customs and border officer when I handed my passport and entered this great country for the first time, and Jim's welcome making me feeling of belonging to what became my new home. Although the exciting feeling of coming this land was long gone, Jim’s caring and generosity and the opportunities I have been provided continue to this day. 

Jim was such a great advisor and supporter. He never hesitated to send his students to conferences even many of us barely spoke appropriate English at the times. As a result, I got many opportunities to talk to other scientists and one of our papers was a result of talking to a Jim’s friend from the UK over dinner on a napkin in a crowded dim restaurant in San Francisco more than 15 years ago. At every conference, Jim would invited his students for a dinner and always insisted he would pay for it. Such a tradition continued many years after I graduated. I once intended to make a joke and told Jim - once was your student and forever your student, which is however literally true. 

During my time at Illinois, Jim and Carol frequently invited his students and postdocs to their home for parties for various occasions. Over the years, many students and scientists who had worked in Jim’s group left with great memories of those gatherings. I wish I could have appreciated even more at the times. 

Jim, you will be forever missed. My best wishes to his family.

I had never met Jim, but I have worked with his son, Greg, for nearly 14 years, and I've met Geoff a few times as well. His sons are great people and based on the memories posted here it sounds like Jim was an amazing person.

Our deepest condolences to Carol and the rest of Jim's family.

Dan Williams and Family (Albany, NY)


It was so sad and shocked to learn of Jim’s passing from Derek. Although we haven’t been in contact for a couple of years, so many fond memories come to mind, becoming fresh and vivid that even made us almost do not believe the news. Jim is such a nice, friendly and inspiring mentor that he has changed our lives. 

When I first met Jim and call him Professor Kirkpatrick, he immediately corrected me and requested me to simply call him Jim. Although it took me a long time to get used to calling him by the first name, his easy-going, happy and fun character soon made me enjoy chatting with him on almost any topics without much shyness. Jim is very tolerant. He never criticized my poor English but always encouraged me by saying that that I write well. He did not push students like many other professors did. Because of his kindness and tolerance, his students were able to have a somewhat relaxing and balanced life, which was quite envied by other students. I enjoyed working as his RA for many consecutive years until graduation and for three additional years thereafter. During my stay in UIUC, Jim and Carol frequently invited us to their home for parties during holidays or when matriculated students returned to the town. The last time was in May 2008, when Jim and Carol already moved to East Lansing MI, they still invited us to a gathering for his students. 

Something he once said during a BBQ event was very impressive: BBQing and serving food should be a man’s job (roughly the meaning). Ever since then, whenever I work at a grill BBQing, I recall what he said and pretty much enjoy the exercise. It sounds a little bit something today but I believe he meant to be nice, and I concur with him totally. 

Something Jim taught and always emphasized was critical thinking skills that we were rarely taught or encouraged to seek in China. It was Jim that advised me the importance of the skills brought me into the fun of spectroscopy and microscopy. 

RIP, Jim! You will be missed.

I am working with Jim for the last 5 years. He was a great mentor, honest and a pillar of strength to me and my family. I have met him almost every day for the last couple of years and seems unreal to think now that I would not get that chance again. I have learnt a lot from him both professionally and personally. 
I and my family will cherish every moment we had spent with you and Carol. You are an inspiration to me and i am grateful for having you as my mentor. We will miss you a lot. May your soul rest in peace.
You will be my mentor forever. 
Here is the smile which I will never forgot.


Jim was an outstanding colleague and mentor. I had many enjoyable interactions with him at conferences and other meetings. I will miss him greatly. 

I'm so sad to hear of Jim's passing.  He was the first person I met when I first came to Illinois in 1983 to interview for a faculty position, for he had drawn the short straw and had to collect me at the airport at midnight, after fog delays.  In subsequent decades, Jim was the primary mentor for all Geology faculty, and subsequently for much of the college.  He was a visionary who, in his kind and thoughtful way, showed succeeding generations how research and administration should be and can be done.  Jim had an aura of authority that always gained the respect of all around him.  He led by example, both as a scientist (showing the importance of being open to new interests) and as an administrator (demonstrating the effectiveness of gaining buy-in before launching an initiative).  He could blow away obscuring mists to focus on the core of an issue better than anyone.  Jim and Carol were gracious hosts who often shared their home over the years for departmental events.  My thoughts are with Carol and the family. 

Jim was a wonderful friend and colleague. We were both department heads at Illinois, and worked together on a number of projects to help our departments.

Jim was my mentor, my friend, and my scholarly partner in crime for over 13 years. We talked at least once a week since we started working together in 2006, if not much more than that, and had many adventures, field trips, and shared discoveries along that time.  Adventures in Washington definitely will not be the same and will always remind me of Jim.  I am blessed and grateful for every minute, every lesson, and definitely every laugh we shared.  Just about everything that my family and I have accomplished in the last ten years is in some way a consequence of my relationship with Jim.  I know they say that everyone can be replaced, but I know with certainty that Jim’s passing left all of us with a hole that will never be filled. Peace be with you Jim, and with your whole family.

Jim and I have have worked very closely in the past 10 years on several scientific projects and published many good papers together. Thanks to Jim's support, I spent several weeks at MSU visiting him for research collaboration almost every summer. During these visits my kids had great time in Michigan such that it felt like a second home to us.  He has been an inspiration to me with his never ending energy and enthusiasm.  

I'll miss you a lot Jim. But rest assured.  We will finish the transport calculations and you will be a co-author on the paper. 

Ozgur Yazaydin (London, UK)

I had the pleasure of working with Dean Jim on a number of projects focused on helping MSU students.  He cared deeply on enhancing the students experience and success. 

It was a pleasure to talk to you at so many many campus meetings. Just two old Irish guys talking. 

I will miss you. 

Jim, you brought me to this great country and introduced NMR to my career. You are the greatest mentor in the world. I still remember you visited UC Davis and gave a seminar on Oct. 13, 2017. I was amazed that you were still sharp and energetic. I enjoyed talking with you, and have been hoping to see you again.
 

I met Jim in the summer of 2016 when I arrived at MSU as a Dean. He was a wonderful example for me; an advocate for his College but also a strong University citizen. His decisions were not always popular, but they were always principled. He will be much missed.

Jim and I were grad students under Prof. Dave Anderson from about 1968 to 1971 when I finished my degree.  Dave was just starting out at Illinois and his students were a small group including Sue Mahlberg (Kay) Al Lappin, Glen Buckley and a few others whose names have been lost from the memory of this old man.   We were all trying to follow Dave's lead in use ideas of non-equalibrium thermodynamics.   

Rest in peace Jim you did Dave proud.  

I was very sorry to hear of Jim's passing this week.  I knew Jim well through work together in the Center for Advanced Cement-Based Materials in the 1990s and 2000s. I really liked him - he was a pleasure to work with, always friendly and humble, and very smart. After a period of not talking for awhile, our acquaintance was renewed when he moved to Michigan State, my alma mater. I was happy to hear that he was Dean of my old college, the college of natural science.  My sincere condolences to his family - he always spoke fondly of his wife and children as we would compare notes on our families.

While I did not have the honor of meeting Jim, I am blessed to work with his daughter, Kathy, and see daily the influence he had in her life and those of her family.  It's said that "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree", and believing that to be true, he must have been an amazing man.  Our prayers are with Jim's family and friends.

I had the chance and great honor of working in Jim’s group for two years (2003-2006).
He offered me the opportunity to work on marvelous projects concerning the synthesis and characterization, using especially solid state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, of layered materials. Working with Jim allowed me to develop my knowledge and competences in many fields of physical-chemistry, materials science and geosciences.
I remember a joyful and passionate scientist, sharing willingly his knowledge and expertise. Jim was also a great advisor and manager who cared for his people.

He was and will remain for me a great scientific and humanistic model.

My thoughts go to his children, grandchildren and all family members. A special thought for his wife Carol I had the chance to know and appreciate during their wonderful gatherings at their home.

Marc Reinholdt (France)


Jim had the commanding manner of a captain, and the impish smile of an Irish elf. At faculty meetings, no one interrupted Jim, not only because he had much wisdom and vision to offer, but also for his “trick” of always pausing in the middle of a sentence and never at the end. 

I met one of my best friends at one of the many fun gatherings in Jim and Carol’s “palace”, which was decorated with southwestern and Chicago arts and served wonderful drinks and meals. The fireplace had pyroxenite mantel, and guests were tested for their levels of mineral identification skills. One evening after a satisfying meal, Jim put on his signature grin and told us to expect a parade of animals. Then we enjoyed animal crackers on ice cream with a good laugh! 

These are some of my fond memories of Jim, in addition to his guidance and inspiration as an accomplished scientist, and his thoughtfulness and generosity as a caring colleague. 

I feel so fortunate to have got to know Jim. He will be missed dearly. I send my best wishes to Carol!

I had the privilege of working closely with Jim for six years as one of his  Associate Deans at MSU. I could not have asked for a better supervisor, collaborator, or mentor. I appreciate all that I learned from him, and treasure the time I had to work with him.

My best wishes to Carol and his family - I know he is dearly missed.

Sekhar Chivukula

Jim was a wonderful person, gentleman, and great asset to MSU.   
I worked with Jim on the College of Natural Science advisory board.   We were involved with  him and the department of Mathematics in helping to get the Actuarial Science program started with Dr Albert Cohen.  

My wife Mary and I would visit with Jim at the MAC often.  He was always plesant.  We will both miss Jim.  

Our heart felt sympathy to you Carol and your family.  

May you rest I’m peace Jim.  

Ron & Mary Simon

OBITUARY

Robert James Kirkpatrick Jr. "Jim"

December 31, 1946 – January 7, 2020

Gorsline Runciman Funeral Homes

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