James Lester Good Jr

Father, Friend, Teacher, Engineer
We mourn the passing of James Lester Good, Jr. (Jim), of Cupertino, CA, who succumbed to the effects of numerous illnesses early in the morning of March 9, 2022. He was comforted by the presence of his children and their spouses, who were with him in his final hours.
The youngest of James L. and Isabella (Creekpaum) Good's five children, Jim was predeceased by his siblings JC, Marie, Bill, and Joan, and his partner of nearly 30 years, Janet Irene Ciotek. He is survived by his former wife, Laura Lawrence Good, children Marian L. Gallagher (Matt) and James L. Good, III (Melissa), and his grandchildren Eleanor Kelly Luttrell Good and Kelly Alexandra Luttrell Good.
Born July 14, 1936, in Perry, AR, Jim spent his early years with his itinerant family in rural Arkansas, moving from farm to town and back again while his parents eked out a living as public school teachers and tenant farmers. Although often poor enough to resort to eating whatever game he could catch, Lester-as he was then and forever hated being called-was intelligent and curious, which was nurtured and encouraged by both of his parents, especially his mother, who doted on him as the youngest.
Jim's fortunes changed, and his horizons expanded, when the family moved to Portland, OR, so their father could take a job as a night watchman at a Kaiser shipyard (and their mother could take a job as a corsetmaker at Sears, Roebuck & Co.) during World War II. This exposure to a new and very different place gave Jim an optimistic worldview that you could become whatever you could imagine if you had brains and worked hard. And Jim imagined, created, and lived out a rich and multifaceted life for himself.
The culture shock of returning to Arkansas after VJ Day and the closing of the shipyards was scarring and only added to Jim's determination to pursue the American Dream of a better life than his ancestors. He started on this part of his life journey at the advanced age of 16 when he graduated from Glenwood High School and matriculated as a Razorback at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Two years later, he transferred to Washington State University, where he was graduated in 1956 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering.
Even before graduating, he secured a job with General Electric in its Electric Engineering Training Program and drove across the country to begin his career in Philadelphia, PA. Quickly promoted to project engineer, he transferred to Ithaca, NY, where he led GE into the infrared space market. Several important milestones were reached while at GE. Professionally, he was awarded three patents for "Yaw Rate Sensor for Outer Space Vehicles," "Thermal Positioning Device," and "Laser Long-Path Infrared Absorption Spectrometer." Personally, he made some of his closest lifelong friendships. And most importantly, he was able to convince one of GE's few female professionals, Laura Lawrence, to work for him as an infrared specialist. They soon began dating, fell in love, and married in 1959.
1961 saw another significant development when his daughter, Marian Lee, came along. Jim's restless spirit, born of his early nomadic existence and long drives, was only whetted by business trips to California. The family eventually moved there in 1963, settling in Belmont-a suburb of San Francisco-as he started a new position as Manager of Electro-Optics Engineering at Dalmo-Victor. There he undertook one of his proudest assignments, designing the communications antenna for the lunar landing module of the Apollo program.
After welcoming his second of two children, James III, in 1963, the family moved to San Carlos in 1964. Jim continued working in what was soon known as Silicon Valley, taking positions first with Sylvania and later with Commercial Electronics Incorporated. In these roles, he specialized in designing and selling a new pollution control technology, the exhaust analyzer, to pollution control agencies, the Big Three, and others. In 1973, Jim became President of Andros Incorporated, a manufacturer of artificial heart and gas detector technology headquartered in Berkeley, CA, which he ran until 1976. During this same period, he took night classes at the University of Santa Clara, where he was awarded an MBA, also in 1976.
Then commenced the most fulfilling episode of his professional life, his time in academia. Jim began as Professor of Finance at Menlo College in Menlo Park, CA, and in 1980 was selected from a pool of 39 candidates to be the Dean of the School of Business Administration (SBA). During his tenure as SBA Dean, academic standards were raised, alumni relations were strengthened, the financial position was improved, and the SBA's reputation in the greater community was significantly enhanced. He loved this job, because he loved teaching. It's what he did best. His children remember him explaining the most difficult concepts-particularly mathematical ones-in terms so simple that he made his audience feel like geniuses. Nothing gave Jim more satisfaction than seeing the "aha!" moment on a student's face when they absorbed and understood a lesson or concept.
As a first-class raconteur, Jim made friends across all cultures and age groups. Jim made more lifelong friends at Menlo, whether elderly alums, senior administrators, cynical first-year students, or sophisticated exchange students.
In 1986, after 25 years in the Golden State, Jim and Laura moved to Portland, OR. Jim left Menlo and joined Laura at Intel, where he was the Western Region Manager, Customer Support Division, until retiring in 1991. Sadly, Portland didn't work out for Jim, and he and Laura were divorced in 1990, remaining friends until his death. He then visited Ecuador as a member of the Peace Corps and held other positions as CFO and/or financial advisor to several organizations, including the Rosicrucian Order.
Back in 1956, when Jim moved from Pullman, Washington to Philadelphia, he met Janet Ciotek (née Wagner). They dated and became engaged, but the relationship ended, and they went on with their separate lives. Jim and Janet reconnected in the early 90s when they found they were both divorced and living in Northern California! Living together as domestic partners, they formed a strong bond that lasted until Janet's passing in 2020.
In addition to all these accomplishments, what will we remember about Jim? First, he had a fantastic sense of humor, and with a twinkle in his eye and a grin on his face, he was always eager to share a laugh with friends and family. You were expected to exchange jokes with him in person or on the phone. Somehow, he always had one that the listener had never heard before, even if they were cringe-worthy "Dad jokes." His telling of a joke was a classic example of barter: you were expected to engage in a one-to-one exchange, and if you were not prepared with a new joke, you were met with a disappointed sign.
Said joke exchange often led to an avalanche of laughs as he would launch into the telling of a hilarious story, complete with an accurate accent if applicable, often about the legendary exploits of a colleague. One of his greatest works was to recount a Baptist sermon from his childhood, accompanied if possible by a friend of his from the South, which would end in tears of nostalgia and laughter as the Holy Spirit was summoned and the sermon affirmed from the Amen corner.
And Jim was a good dad. He ensured his children had excellent educations-which had to include the arts. He could be strict, but his high expectations and standards came from a good place, one that had served him well as he climbed out of ignorance and poverty to a comfortable, upper-middle-class life. He achieved the American Dream and wanted only the best for his family. At the same time, he inculcated his children with the philosophy that hard work is a reward in itself, talent will out, and "good enough" is NOT good enough.
Jim loved art, especially music. He knew the transformative power of a memorable piece, whether it be "Rock Around the Clock," a Scott Joplin rag, or a Mahler symphony. His love of music manifested in several ways: his impressive collection of albums (later downloads and CDs), his love of live performances, and his in-depth studies of great composers. Even when he was in no condition to walk or drive, he would get himself to Stanford University to attend an adult education course in Beethoven. If the subject was music, there was no deterring Jim.
His love of music stretched across nearly every genre, including jazz, rock, country, and even EDM. In later life, much to the surprise of his grandchildren, one of his favorite acts was Pitbull. Google him. You probably won't believe that this lover of classical music would also have Pitbull on high rotation, but such was the eclecticism that defined Jim. His son Jim III remembers being woken nearly every weekday morning by the familiar opening of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" only to witness a 6'5",full-framed business school dean dancing around the living room in his PJs. His family is thankful that he performed with his robe on.
His love of art extended to poetry as well. During his downtime, you were likely to find Jim in his den reading from one of his favorite poetry collections or, if the mood was right, writing a poem. As with everything he did, they were good and could be delivered with a wink. One of his most memorable works was "John Henry Becomes Computerized," a work in couplets that updates the classic tale of a battle between man and machine.
And Jim was a searcher and philosopher. He was fascinated by the mysteries of life and the universe, studying such concepts as Hilbert space and string theory and reading works by many of the world's spiritual leaders. He considered himself an agnostic and a humanist, and it wasn't a good day if he hadn't learned something new. Related to these studies was his deep concern for a more just and compassionate world. He supported women's equality, education, and access to all forms of healthcare. In his professional life, he often searched out and hired women candidates. The recent reversals in women's and civil rights were profoundly upsetting to him.
No recollection of Jim's life is complete without mentioning his genealogical research. This passion arose in the 1970s and stayed with him until his final days. He spent countless hours at the Census Bureau archive in San Bruno, the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, and county recorders' offices, cemeteries, and churches throughout the country (and Northern Ireland) looking for the "Good" immigrant. He was ecstatic when he discovered that Robert Good was that immigrant, but he never did uncover whether Robert was born in County Ayrshire, Scotland, as Jim suspected. He did determine with pride that the family were septs of Clan Boyd and Clan Gunn and that Tallulah Bankhead was a distant relative.
Jim also researched his mother's side of the family, the Creekpaums, and other ancestors such as the Gaileys. He published two works of genealogy: Robert Good and His Descendants (2000, 2012) and Conrad Kriegbaum and his Creekpaum Descendants (2000). These are in addition to his memoir, Borrowed Bibles (2012), which recounts his days growing up in Arkansas and Portland, memories of his parents and siblings, and his faith journey.
Jim-Dad, Grandpa, Husband, Friend-you have touched thousands of lives and made the world a better place during your 85 years. You are in all of our hearts, and we'll never forget you.
Jim will be remembered by his family and friends later this year in California. Contributions in his memory can be made to radio station KDFC.com or Elderabuse.org.
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