He was a federal government employee, and spent more than 28 years serving both domestically and abroad at the U.S. embassies in Brussels, Belgium and Bern, Switzerland. After his government service, Jim worked as the director of security on the Steve Forbes presidential campaign, and later as a contractor to the government with his own small international investigative business in Washington, D.C. Upon retirement, he recently relocated to Arizona.

For years he has been a member and supporter of the German American Heritage Foundation and is now at the Council of 1000 level. He wants to promote GAHF membership and has recently done so at a meeting of Volga-Germans in Arizona with assistance from a GAHF staff member. If not already done, there are several groups in academia, business, and even government which can be contacted through a GAHF outreach program which may be of interest. Organizations similar to GAHF are also a source for membership and support both domestically and internationally. As an advocate for our German-American culture, he would be pleased to serve on the Board of Directors, and is willing to serve on any committee of GAHF as needed.