Accomplishments

Baseball - Varsity, 3 years

Played 2nd Base for Calvin College, 1 year

Basketball - Varsity 3 years

Football - Varsity, 2 years

College - Western Michigan University

Coaching 

Varsity baseball at Athens High School

Freshman basketball at Sparta High School

Varsity basketball at Algoma Christian

Softball, Fast Pitch

Played for seven State Championship teams

Played for one National Championship team

Played for one World Championship team

Twice named All-American third-baseman 

Upon graduation from Sparta High School, Jim attended and graduated from Western Michigan University in 1973 with a degree in education, and he received his masters degree in teaching social science. He has taught secondary educatin for the past 23 years, nine of those years at Sparta High School. He also taught at Algoma Christian and held the position of Athletic Director. 

Jim married Faith (Geers) and is extremely proud of their two children:  Troy and Audra. Troy attended Michigan state University in pre-law and political science, and Audra attended Pepperdine University in their English program. 

To say Jim remained active in athletics is an understatement. He played ice hockey for many years with a group of Sparta grads. He regularly played tennis, basketball, volleyball, while also playing for a fast-pitch softball team. He was a stat-keeper for the Sparta High School Girls' basketball team and referred to himself as a "statistics junkie." 

Jim asks young athletes to consider the following bit of advice:  "Your high school years are short - Don't cheat yourself by not giving your best - or later, you may have regrets."