Jim Emmer

Jim Emmer

Greetings Golfers,

I come to you with a heavy heart. One of my best friends and one of Deer Run’s best friends … died of a heart-attack on Monday.

 
Jim Emmer was a larger-than-life fellow. He was not your cliche staid-Minnesotan. He was fun, funny, charming … and spoke his mind.

 
The early days at DRGC were not easy. Jim was on the Mens Club Board that I created in the Fall of 1991. We had no players. By 1994 … we had over 300 members in the Mens Club … and a busy golf course. But our problems were not over. In fact, drama and power plays took over. I walked away. But Jim talked me into coming back.

 
That was not the last time that Jim was there for me. Over the past 34 years, I’ve been in a bunch brutal wars … Jim always had my back. After the wars … lots of people acted like they were there for me … they weren’t … but Jim was. He was that guy.

 
Not only was he a driving force at Deer Run … he was a major player in everything else that was happening in town.

Father Bob White - the incredible leader at St. Victoria Church - was one of Jim’s high school friends and came out here because of him.

 
Holy Family High School seemed to come out nowhere when it opened in 2000. Jim Emmer was one of the main reasons it all came together and magically opened.

 
As you can see … he was driving the success of Victoria from behind the scenes. His drive and guts and personality got great things started … and he stayed with them to make sure they survived and thrived.

 
Jim was always a leader. He played hockey and was  student body president at St. Thomas Academy. After graduating from the University of St. Thomas … he married Nan and they raised their sons - Tim and Patrick in south Minneapolis … before moving to Victoria in 1993.

 
I can’t believe how far Victoria has come in the last 30 years. Jim Emmer had a lot to do with that … more than most people know. I was hoping that he had another 30 years to keep us on track.

 
Well … he built the track … and showed us how to stay on it. I can’t thank him enough.

 
R. I. P.

Tom Abts
GM/Head PGA Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com