Jim Warsaw

Longtime GBF Board Member, Legendary Sports Marketing Pioneer, Philanthropist, Parkinson’s Patient Advocate dies at 61

 

 

James H Warsaw, age 61, philanthropist, Parkinson’s patient advocate, sports marketing icon, devoted husband, loving father, brother,  and son, passed away  April 22nd at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. 

Warsaw was a beloved mentor to scores of sports marketing students who graduated from the Warsaw Center at the University of Oregon, which he established in 1993.
Long known for his pioneering influence in the field of sports marketing, Jim accompanied his brother Robert into the family business, Sports Specialties Corporation, established by their late father David Warsaw.  The company, a trendsetter in many ways, was the leading marketer of authentic team sports headwear for Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NHL, and the NCAA and was also known as the inventor of  Bobble Head dolls for stars and sports teams . Sports Specialties was the first licensee of NFL Properties. 
Upon the sale of Sports Specialties to Nike in 1993, Jim Warsaw embarked on a second career as a philanthropist, contributing to numerous causes throughout the country.  However, his special love was reserved for the University of Oregon on whose Board of Trustees he served and which housed the center bearing his name.

While Jim was a devoted and doting father to his three sons, Bryan, Zak, and Kyle, he was never too busy to field dozens of calls each week from students and former students whose careers he profoundly impacted.   Jim was a 1965 graduate of Beverly Hills High school where he was inducted into that schools Hall of Fame in 2006.  As a visionary who wielded wide influence in the world of sports, Jim maintained close personal relationships with many of the professional sports leagues’ commissioners, and in 2008 was inducted into the Orange County Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.

A member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, Jim was honored by its national board for his philanthropic work.   Jim has served on numerous philanthropic Boards including The Giving Back Fund, where he established the James H Warsaw Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, the University of Oregon, the LA Sports Council, and the USC Sports Business Institute.  As a Parkinson’s patient and patient advocate, Jim, through his foundation, convened a groundbreaking international Parkinson’s Summit in 2001 of the leading scientists, clinicians, and researchers in the field.  The Summit gave birth to the Cure Parkinson’s Program which Jim Co-Founded.  Up until the time of his death, Jim was a leading national patient advocate in the fight to cure Parkinson’s disease. 
Jim is survived by his wife Ellyne, sons Bryan, Zakary, and Kyle, his Mother Anne , his brothers Zeke (Carolyn) and Robert (Carol), and his sister Wendy Ruby (Ken) and his beloved nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held Sunday April 26 at 12:30 PM at Temple Bat Yahm, 1011 Camelback Street in Newport Beach, California.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Jim’s honor to The Warsaw Sports Marketing Center, 1208 University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon 97403
and/or James H Warsaw Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, 6033 West Century Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, California 90045 and the Cure Parkinson’s Program at the same address.

 

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