Bismarck, ND – Longtime basketball coach in the Bismarck area Jim Jeske passed away on Wednesday after a protracted battle with cancer. In the 2021–22 season, Jeske stepped down as the head coach at Bismarck State College due to health reasons after coaching at Century High School.
Jeske, a native of New England, North Dakota, held numerous positions in education before joining Bismarck Public Schools in 2000. She taught at Centennial Elementary and served as the principal of Solheim and Pioneer Elementary schools.
Jeske leaves behind his wife and three kids. You may hear his tale in his message of gratitude here, which he posted after receiving his diagnosis in 2021.
As a result of this death, friends, family, and loved ones have paid tributes across different social media platforms, some of the tributes are below;
Trish Jeske, Jim’s wife released the following statement after her husband’s death;
As many of you know, Jim was diagnosed with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer with metastases to the brain on December 1, 2020. Having Stage IV cancer did not stop Jim from living his life. He spent the last two years fighting this disease and at the same time used his journey to encourage others to live a life with a perspective that allows you to practice gratitude every day.
Recently in December, Jim started not feeling well. Through the end of the year, we had countless appointments and visits to the Emergency Room trying to determine the cause of the physical and cognitive setbacks Jim had been experiencing. Finally in January, we discovered Jim had Leptomeningeal Metastases Disease, which means cancer cells were found in the brain and spinal cord fluid. With this new diagnosis, Jim’s oncology and neurology medical teams in Bismarck and at Mayo Clinic decided to pursue whole brain radiation and Proton Therapy for the spinal cord at Mayo Clinic. The hope was that these treatments would relieve some pain for Jim and give him more time with us. Unfortunately, the doctors felt that they did not see the positive response they were hoping for and since there were no other treatment options available that would benefit Jim, they recommended Jim return home under hospice care.
After two short weeks of precious time with Jim at home with us in hospice care, today Heaven has gained a new angel. We are heart broken but we feel blessed to have had so many years of wonderful memories and the ability to share in his message of living with gratitude in each and every day.
Greg Jung, Jim Jeske’s longtime friend expressed his sorrow by writing a heartfelt message on his Facebook account;
Last Sunday I had the opportunity to visit my long time friend Jim Jeske. Even though it was hard to see him in his condition, we were able to spend a some time together. I am forever grateful for those last moments as well as all the great memories we were able to have together. My mind is flooded with memories of our shenanigans growing up in New England, being teammates in football, basketball, and baseball, our wedding days, and our battles coaching against each other.
Anyone that knew him was touched by his kindness, caring, and unselfish attitude.
I know when Jim was fighting his battle he was spreading the message of GRATITUDE. Gratitude is pausing, taking notice, and being thankful for what you have or what someone has done for you. Make a conscious effort to spread this message of gratitude to the people in your life.
I am sharing this quote from Jim’s last tweet he shared on Twitter.
“Live each day with GRATITUDE, it costs you nothing!!”
Rest in peace my friend. Prayers to Trish Jeske and her family. May they find peace and comfort.
