James J Finke , VRHS Class of 1957
James "Jim" Joseph Finke, 84, of East Greenbush, New York, passed away on August 12, 2024 at Albany Medical Center surrounded by his loving family. Born in Albany, NY on February 27, 1940, to Marion Elizabeth (Hyland) and James Ernst Finke I. Jim's formative years were spent in Rensselaer, where his lifelong passion for sports was cultivated. He graduated from Van Rensselaer High School in 1957, playing both varsity baseball and basketball. Following high school, Jim attended St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY, where he played freshman baseball, was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity and graduated with a B.S. in Mathematics in 1961. Upon graduation from St. Lawrence, Jim began his professional career as an Engineering Materials Analyst with the New York State Department of Transportation. During his nearly four-decade career with NYSDOT, he participated on several national and regional committees including as the NYSDOT representative to the National Transportation Product Evaluation Program from its inception in 1994 until his retirement in 1998. Although a proud and accomplished civil servant, Jim will undoubtedly be remembered most for his pursuits outside the workplace, most notably his dedication to family, tireless community service commitments, passion for youth sports and as a historian, statistician and archivist. Jim married Elaine Barbara Whitbeck on September 18, 1965, at the Bethany Reformed Church in Albany. They established residency in East Greenbush where they raised their four children and became active members of the Greenbush Reformed Church community. At GRC, Jim served on Consistory, was a member of the Finance and Property and Grounds committees and was the church treasurer for many years. Jim dedicated a tremendous amount of time and energy to numerous civic organizations, undertaking leadership roles in all. Following in his father's footsteps, Jim was raised as a Freemason in 1961 in Mount Vernon Lodge No. 3, an organization that pre-dates the founding of our country. He served as Master four times over three decades- 1968, 1974, 1978, 2005-08. He also held various offices throughout that time both in Mt. Vernon and other Masonic Associations. He was honored to be appointed Right Worshipful by the Grand Master. In 1973, he began as a corresponding member of the American Lodge of Research and he published a paper in 1980 titled "History of Albany Masonic Meeting Places." Jim's long-standing ties to the youth baseball community in East Greenbush dates back to the early 1970s, when he began coaching Babe Ruth Baseball. He served on the Board of Directors including a long stint as President. He also coached Mickey Mantle, Melvin Roads American Legion and SORENSCO Connie Mack teams in the '80's. Beginning in 1987 he became the District 4 Commissioner then State Commissioner from 1998 to 2006. He was Assistant Regional Commissioner for the Mid-Atlantic Region beginning in 2004. In 2005 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Eastern NYS Babe Ruth Baseball Commission and was inducted into the Mid-Atlantic Region Babe Ruth Hall of Fame in 2017. His enthusiasm for sports was not limited to baseball as he also spent 3 decades as the statistician for Columbia High boys and girls basketball resulting in his 2010 induction into the All-Sports Club Athletic Hall of Fame. Jim also had a passion for college hockey. He was a writer and publishing assistant for the Intercollegiate Hockey Newsletter from 1967-1994, ECAC Hockey historian for over twenty years and a member of their Lake Placid tournament staff. In 2017 Jim was inducted along with his father into the Alumni Association of the Rensselaer School District Hall of Fame for his abundant community service and volunteer work. He was a charter member and past president of the Boys and Girls Club of Southern Rensselaer County, a member of Friends of Fort Crailo, the Greenbush Historical Society and board member and treasurer of the Greenbush Cemetery Association. In 2005 he co-authored East Greenbush, Then & Now, a pictorial history of the town. In addition to his parents, Jim was predeceased by his beloved wife of 52 years, Elaine; his son-in-law Jeffrey Sauter, and his sister-in-law Joan Hollner. He is survived by his son James Finke, daughters, Barbara Sauter, Linda Finke, Judith Vitali (David Morse), his grandchildren Evan Finke, Karl Sauter, Glen Sauter II, Joseph Vitali, Casey (Raj) Sarai, Taylor (Craig) Capuano, and great-grandchildren Logan, Luca and Charlie, his brother Leonard Finke, cousin James McNary and brother-in-law Robert Hollner, as well as several nephews, nieces and cousins. The family is grateful to the medical staff on the second-floor neurology ICU at Albany Medical Center for their compassion and care. Interment will be in East Greenbush Cemetery. Donations in Jim's memory can be made to the Masonic Medical Research Institute, 2150 Bleecker St., Utica, NY 13501 or Greenbush Reformed Church, P.O. Box 460, East Greenbush, NY 12061.