James Patrick Fox, a loyal son of New Jersey, passed away at Lourdes Hospital in Camden on Monday, February 20. He was sixty two years old and died after a long struggle with kidney disease. ‘Jamie,’ as he was known since childhood, was born in Elizabeth on October 30, 1954, the son of Edward and Peggy (O’Connor) Fox.

He was a graduate of Saint Patrick High School and a proud graduate of Villanova University, and a 35 year resident of Lambertville. Jamie was predeceased by his parents and brother Bobby. He is survived by his brother, Tom (Nancy) Fox of Fredon, and sisters Judy (Dan) Higgins of Elizabeth, Jane Fox of Delray Beach, Florida, and Meg (Don) Fox-Koscheka of Red Bank, and nephews Patrick and Sean Higgins, Jamie and Connor Fox, Robert and Ryan Fox, Colin Behan and nieces Bridget Dudas, Colleen Fox and Kate Hess.

Jamie’s entire life was spent in the public sector, and was surely one of the giants of New Jersey politics. In forty years of service he twice served as the Commissioner of Transportation, once under Democratic Governor Jim McGreevy and again under Republican Governor Christie. Earlier Jamie was the Chief of Staff or advisor to four New Jersey Governors; McGreevy, Florio, Cody, and Corzine. In addition, he was Chief of Staff to Senator Robert Torricelli as well as a former Director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. In 2008 Jamie spearheaded the Florida presidential campaign for Barrack Obama.

Jamie was involved in many of the most important New Jersey public policy achievements of the past thirty years, including New jersey’s assault on weapons ban; restrictions on ocean dumping; the preservation of the Highlands; overhauls of the EZ pass system and the Motor Vehicle Department, and the consolidation of the Turnpike and Parkway.

Titles, however, were not Jamie’s goal, and don’t do justice to his influence on the people he worked with and the public impact he made across our State. Simply, New Jersey is a better place because of his life work. Jamie was a man of integrity who lived by his word and subscribed to an old school code of respect and loyalty. Few citizens of the state have been as widely admired across both sides of the political spectrum. The last decade Jamie has shared a business with long time friend Eric Shuffler of River Crossing Strategy Group, based in New York and Trenton. The business was founded and built on the values they lived by – personal service, honest advice, and dedication to their clients.

A celebration of Jamie's life will be held 3pm March 6, 2017 at Grounds for Sculpture, 80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township, NJ 08619. Arrangements are under the direction of the Van Horn-McDonough Funeral Home, Lambertville, NJ.

A scholarship fund in Jamie's name has been established : The James P. Fox Memorial Fund, c/o River Crossing Strategy Group/Eric Shuffler, 128 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08608 ( Please note: any donation check should be dated March 15, 2017 or later.).

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