James Robert Laidlaw, 66, died on April
18, 2012, with family by his side in Somerville, NJ, at Somerset
Medical Center.
He was born on August 21, 1945, in San
Antonio, TX, to J. Robert and Ofelia Onderdonk Laidlaw. A graduate of
The Wardlaw School (‘63), Jim earned his bachelor’s degree in
Anthropology from the University of Maine, Orono, in 1973. He met and
married his wife, Judy, during his time in Maine. He moved his family
to the Gulf Coast in Florida shortly after, but Somerset County, NJ,
has been his home for the past two decades. Jim worked at the Barnes
& Noble in Bridgewater for more than ten years.
He was an active member of St. Martin’s
Episcopal Church in Bridgewater. He served on the vestry and as a
Eucharistic Minister. A former member of the Log Cabin Gun Club,
Warren, NJ, Jim was an exceptional marksman, who enjoyed skeet
shooting. He was a card shark par excellence and an avid reader, with
science fiction being a particular passion. Music of all genres
narrated every aspect of his life. He also loved the outdoors and
spent much time with his family at their cabin in the Adirondacks.
Lastly, no one will ever be able to match his cheeseburgers on the
grill.
Jim, or “Jan,” as only his
granddaughter, called him, is also survived by his
wife, his mother, and his
children. He is
also loved and remembered by his sister and his brothers.
The family requests that donations be
made to MGH Bladder Cancer Research Fund, Massachusetts General
Hospital Development Office, 165 Cambridge Street, Boston, MA 02114,
in memory of James R. Laidlaw, in lieu of flowers.
