[We know that Breakfast Club was founded in 1967 or before from Holger Jannasch's eulogy for Jim Cunningham, who died in 1997. The founders included Holger, Jimmy, Cliff Wingate, Buzz Harvey, Dick Campbell, and Carol Reinisch, and from them we know that Breakfast Club has met pretty much continuously, with a continuity of "membership," since its founding. I obtained the text below from Holger's son Hans. -- David I. June 28, 2010.]
Holger Jannasch eulogy for Jim Cunningham.
I saw Jim last week just before I had to leave for an overseas trip, and it was clear to me that I would not see him alive again. But he was out of pain, and I think he was himself ready to go.
We met more than 30 years ago, four of us creating a sort of breakfast club that took on a life of its own -- and Jim was the heart of it. And that is probably the key word: I have never met anyone in my life with a heart as big as Jim's His interest in family and friends, and his kindness when talking about people, was unique. This attracted me to Jim, and I was proud when he started to call me his friend.
During the last years, when he could not join us in the mornings any longer, we often went out for a dinner at night. He told me about his childhood in Nova Scotia, his time as a paratrooper during the war -- where the human aspects of the book, "All Quiet on the Western Front" reflected his personal experience -- and then his time in Boston, and finally on Naushon and in Woods Hole.
His kindness of heart could be felt all through the story of a joyful life. And then -- no one of us could understand why this man had to suffer so much during his last years. But it could not kill his basic cheerfulness. And he must have perceived it as a great blessing that he could die at home, surrounded and taken care of by his family.
I am not a mystic, but I can easily imagine Jim being here and telling me, "Thank you my friend, but this is quite enough." But one thing he might like me to add, namely to wish you Vesta, Brenda, Jennifer and Nancy, that the gratefulness to have had Jim as your husband or father will in time be stronger than the sadness and the everyday pain in missing him around you.
I am sure that Jim's grandchildren know that they are fortunate to have had such a grandfather. I remember Jim's happiness when Nancy's twins were born and endless occasions when he took them to hockey games and such. If you have inherited some of his human qualities, he will, even without your thinking about it, accompany you through your lives. You might ask yourself, at moments when dealing with people or things are difficult, what would Jim have said in this situation? I already do so, consciously or unconsciously.
As for me, I can only say:" Thank you, Jim, for unforgettable memories, many unintentional sound lessons, and an altogether wonderful friendship.
Last modified: 29June2010