James C Maher

James (“Jim”) Clinton Maher, husband, father, scientist, inventor, athlete, Pittsburgh Steeler super-fan, and all around crazy Irishman passed away on Monday, March 17, 2025, from complications of cancer. (Yes, the Crazy Irishman passed on St. Patrick’s Day!) He was 79.

Hunter S. Thompson once said: “Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, 'Wow! What a ride!'”. Jim would surely agree wholeheartedly. Never one to be constrained by societal norms, he proudly lived life on his own terms.

If one were to ask Jim’s friends and family if he had a bigger brain, or bigger heart, there would be fierce debate. His heart could be seen in his political views where he was a liberal, simply because he couldn’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to help people who “didn’t have a pot to piss in”, as well as in his astonishing ability to forgive other people’s shortcomings.

He was loyal to a fault. He loved his family and served as a constant advocate and protector. This was evident whether he was attending his children’s sporting events, boasting about their accomplishments, or threatening bodily harm to his daughter’s boyfriends should they not treat her well. His eyes especially lit up when he spoke about his only granddaughter, who loved chemistry as much as he did. She just refused to admit it.

Jim’s passion was on full display during a Pittsburgh “Stillers” game. While Jim had a huge heart, any animosity he held inside him was reserved for men that wore black and white striped shirts, and blew whistles for a living. There wasn’t a game where Jim wouldn’t inquire, loud enough for the neighbors to hear, whether the refs were blind and/or had “shit between their ears”. And, if the “Stillers” were playing the Dallas Cowboys, the refs were sure to have an Iron City beer can thrown at their heads at least once.

Not to be outdone, his brain earned a Master’s Degree in Engineering and an illustrious career as a scientist at Xerox, Kodak, and Rosetta Technologies, with several patents being issued in his name along the way. Science wasn’t just a job for Jim, it was largely his approach to life.

He loved music, old movies, and books. As an avid reader, he had eclectic taste, but was most interested in history, politics, religion, and (of course) science, but also devoured every Nelson DeMille, Lee Child, and Michael Crichton novel as soon as it was released in hardback.

He was endlessly curious, and wanted you to be so too. He seemed to see it as one of his duties in life to help instill that curiosity in others. Once at a wedding reception, he went around asking people: “if you had a helium balloon in a car, and you accelerated, which way would the balloon move?”. If someone gave the wrong answer, he promptly bet them they were wrong. After gathering several bets, he took a balloon from the reception and asked them to go for a ride with him (hopefully, but not certainly, sober). He left the ride a little richer, and he hoped, the others a little smarter. (If you’re curious, and he’d hope you are… the balloon moves forward…)

Jim is survived by his wife Sharon Maher, his children Kelly Maher, and Sean Maher (Nicole Maher), and his granddaughter Caitlin Roberts.