James "Jim" Nelson Reeb

James Nelson Reeb made the great quantum leap into the unknown on March 28, 2025.

He was predeceased by his high school sweetheart and late wife, Virginia Irene Goodwill, on October 1, 2020 and his middle son, John Jacob “Buzz” Reeb, on August 21, 2017. His parents were James Jacob Reeb and Geraldine Cione Cahalan.

He leaves behind his widow, Bridgette (nee Sullivan), his sister Jerri Fiolek and brother-in-law Robert, two surviving sons James Nelson II and Jason as well as daughters-in-law Susan and Angela, eight grandchildren (James Nelson III, Maia, Jacob, Zachary, Hannah, Samuel, Grace, and Eleanor) and two great-grandchildren (Stiorra and Rosalina).

Jim was born on June 4, 1942 in Buffalo, NY. He grew up in Pennsylvania near Canadohta Lake, and went to Union City High School with the class of 1960.

He joined the U.S. Navy in January 1960. Following morse code training in Imperial Beach, CA, he completed Russian language training at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center in Monterey, CA. Enroute to Kamiseya, Japan, he married his high school sweetheart Virginia Irene Goodwill (Ginny) in Union City, PA, in September 1961. This was the beginning of a distinguished career as one of the Navy’s premier cryptologic linguists. Retiring as a Master Chief Petty Officer/Chief Warrant Officer (CWO4), he served for 28 years as an active-duty Navy servicemember, and for 21 years as a civilian Senior Intelligence Specialist with the Department of the Navy. Attending junior college in Pensacola, FL, he received his associate of arts degree in September 1970.

During his retirement ceremony at Fort Meade, MD on 28 March 2008, a former senior U.S. Government official publicly identified Jim as the Russian speaker during a burial at sea ceremony on 4 September 1974 for six Soviet submariners who perished in the Pacific Ocean on 8 March 1968 aboard Soviet submarine K-129 during the CIA project to retrieve said submarine from the sea floor (Project Azorian). His proudest role in this project was helping the families of the Soviet submariners find peace, closure, and restitution for their loss by returning a piece of the hull to the St. Petersburg Submariners Club.

Following his retirement, he and his late wife Virginia moved to Cape Coral, FL. After her death, he returned to his beloved Crawford County, PA. Shortly after this, the crooked path led him to find Bridgette, whom he married on May 4, 2022 in Meadville, PA. They had nearly four beautiful years together. Jim and Bridgette met in June 2021 and bonded over a shared passion for helping others as well as being veterans of the Naval intelligence service. After a pharmaceutical injury left Bridgette with a severe neurological disorder in October 2021, Jim nursed her back to health. Thanks to Jim, she was able to transfer her studies to Allegheny College in August 2022 to pursue her vision of creating philosophically-informed educational media to empower patients to be more engaged in their own healthcare. When not rising to meet the challenges of supporting an older full-time student, Jim joined Bridgette in road trips to museums, national parks, Naval Cryptologic Veterans Association reunions, and more. They led a full and vivid life in spite of its temporal and physical limitations, exploring the world from the dinner table at home and in restaurants across the Eastern seaboard. Alongside Fred Rogers, Jim is the inspiration for the neighborhood philosophy that is the foundation of Bridgette’s work. He will live on in the neighborhood that he helped Bridgette create.

Jim did not cease being a good neighbor after retirement. Sober for 21+ years, he guided many through their recovery from alcoholism. He volunteered to run Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, served meals on Saturdays at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Meadville, PA, and supported many other community programs. He was a mentor and friend to many at Allegheny College, where his wife Bridgette studied to complete her undergraduate degree from fall of 2022 to spring 2025. He loved camping, fishing, hunting, woodworking, (pretending not to love) animals, cooking for friends and family, detective shows, meteorology, word puzzles and word play, strong coffee, and bacon. He often said: “Love is measured in bacon.” But most of all, he loved being a helper. Whether it was as a Navy Chief, as a civilian subject matter expert, a husband and father, or just a compassionate listener, Jim exemplified a life of service and neighborly love.

In lieu of flowers, his family requests donations to Grace Unlimited Foundation (for the people of his beloved Crawford County and in honor of his commitment to helping those in recovery from substance use disorder) or the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (for the Sailors he loves).

Visitation will be held from 2-5 PM on Saturday, April 12, 2025, at STEPHEN P. MIZNER FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICES, INC., 404 CHESTNUT ST. MEADVILLE.

A Memorial Service will be held at 11 AM on Jim's 83rd birthday, Wednesday, June 4, 2025, at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 346 Chestnut St., Meadville. A Celebration of Jim's life will continue from 5-7 PM at FCCA, 378 Chestnut St., Meadville, with a time of sharing to begin at 5:30 PM.

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