Jim Bassett
Considering the long legacy he and his family have established at Saint John's University, it's funny to think Jim Bassett's first impressions of the place weren't necesarrily positive.
"I went here for two years and didn't like it, so I left and went back to work on the ore boats in the Great Lakes," recalls Bassett, a 1958 SJU graduate. "Then I went to St. Thomas for one semester and I hated it there too. I was a kid from Bemidji and everyone else on campus seemed to go home to their high school friends on the weekend. I was always there alone.
"So I went back out on the ore boats until I figured out that if I returned to Saint John's for a year, I could graduate."
Which is what Bassett did, this time establishing ties that have remained strong throughout the decades since. He went on to serve as president of the national alumni association and six of his sons attended the school while two of his daughters went to the College of Saint Benedict.
"I guess you could say I had a 180-degree turnabout," he said with a chuckle.
Part of that was due to his family's long association with legendary head coach Jim Smith and the Johnnies basketball program. One of his sons handled statistics for the team, another helped coach the junior varsity while two more played - including Larry '92, an All-MIAC selection who scored over 1,000 points in his collegiate career.
"We just fell in love with the program," Bassett said. "It's been so good to our family. We've gone along with the team on a couple of trips to Europe, we've been to Brazil, we once went out west to Portland. And Jim Smith has become one of my best friends.
"Basketball at Saint John's has meant a lot to us over the years."
Bassett has long been a generous donor to the program and he's taken steps to ensure that philanthropy continues even after he's gone by establishing an estate plan that includes a dedicated gift to the Jim Smith Endowed Basketball Leadership Program Fund.
It's an endowment established to support Johnnies basketball by providing budget enhancement funding to ensure the program is able to remain at a competitive level in the MIAC and nationally in NCAA Division III.
"Jim Smith is the greatest guy in the world," said Bassett, who is also a generous donor to a number of other causes including Catholic Charities. "I can't say enough good things about everything he's done for so many people over the years.
"And I think Pat McKenzie has come in and done a great job since taking over (following Smith's retirement in 2015). We have a really good basketball program here with really great people running it. I just want to do what I can to make sure that continues in the years to come.
"A gift like this is easy to do if you can afford it and I've been fortunate enough that I'm able to."
