Jim loved dogs.

Thursday, September 19th, 2024, James Bartlett Madden passed away unexpectedly at home in Post Mills. The son of Stephen and Verna (Burr) Madden, Jim came into the family and world on March 12th, 1963, joining older siblings Salli and Chris. Jim grew up in Massapequa, Long Island. Though he was a born and bred city boy, he found he was much happier in the country. As an adolescent and young adult, he worked at a Methodist summer camp in Upstate New York. He counted these among his happiest times. On occasion he would talk about how much he enjoyed the peace he felt mowing the acres of fields at the camp.

In keeping with his discomfort with city life, he chose Northland College in Northern Wisconsin (sight unseen) after graduating high school. It was here, in addition to those found at the camp, that he met some of his lifelong friends. Some years after graduating from college, it was a fellow alum who introduced him to the Upper Valley. He first worked at Tom Mowatt's, a cycle shop in Hanover, NH. It was there he met and fell in love with Jennifer Burch. They were married in 1997.

After Tom Mowatt's, Jim got a job on the production floor at a small local business: Hypertherm. He spent over twenty years with Hypertherm, working his way to being a Senior Technical Writer.

During his time at Hypertherm, Jim participated in a local school's reading program. Jim would spend some of his lunch hours hanging out with his reading buddy (there were a few over the years) reading books, playing games, and talking.

Jim and Jen parted ways amicably in 2014.

Jim met his partner, Lise Solbeck, in 2016. Through Lise, he gained a bonus extended family: Lise's three adult kids, Sage, Mercy, and Ray. Mercy and Ray each moved in with them for a while a few years later. It was this quartet of personalities that rode out the early days of the pandemic together. Over the years, he would enjoy holiday dinners and birthday celebrations with Lise, her three kids, her kids' dad, and various significant others. He came to really enjoy and value these somewhat overwhelming and often chaotic events.

Jim enjoyed auto cross, attending local and out-of-state events over the years. A member of Sports Car Club of America local chapters, Jim quietly (and deservedly) was proud of his technical driving skills.

But it was Jim's love of dogs that was the constant his entire life. As he would say, his dogs were spoiled but not in a dress-them-up way. They were "spoiled" with his love and care.

Time took a lot away from Jim in recent years. Between 2017 and 2022, Jim lost his mother, sister, and brother, and two beloved dogs. Having lost his father in 1986, Jim deeply grieved the loss of his entire immediate family.

Jim left Hypertherm, seeking something different. He missed his Hypertherm work family, but he knew he needed a change. After exploring jobs and taking some time off, Jim found a temporary position with Crossroads Academy in Lyme, NH this past spring. It was here Jim found what he was looking for. He truly loved working as a caretaker for the school. He found a new work family who came to love him as much as he loved them. In addition to his colleagues, he enjoyed interacting with the kids and surprised himself by how protective of them he felt. And, like decades previously at the camp, Jim happily mowed the school grounds, as well as performing many other critical and more challenging tasks, such as working with his supervisor to address the nuisance bear who relished dumpster diving and dragging garbage into the woods for them to gather back up. When the school offered him a permanent position, he eagerly accepted.

After a few rough years, Jim was happy with his life again. He took pride in his work, he enjoyed sharing positive and funny work stories at the end of his day, and he smiled. A lot.

Jim was predeceased by his father, mother, and siblings, as well as some important dogs: Fella, Hamlet, Merlin (a friend's dog), Kobi, and Willy.

He is survived by his brother's wife and adult kid, Susan Marchand of Massachusetts, and Jules Madden of New York City; his wife, Jen Madden of Virginia; an impressive number of aunts, uncles, and cousins; his and Lise's dog, Emmett; his cat, JoJo; Lise's kids, Sage Solbeck of Massachusetts, Mercy Solbeck of California, and Ray Solbeck (and dog, Myla) of Vermont; and his partner, Lise Solbeck (and dog, Caoimhe) of Post Mills and Lebanon.

A celebration of his life will be planned at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider sending a donation in support of a special dog sanctuary Jim believed in: Good Dogma by the Sea, P.O. Box 262  Perry ME 04667

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