I've posted a brief timeline of Jamie's life with family photos.
 |
| Walt, Virginia, Christie and Jamie |
Jamie was born to artist Virginia Irvin (Noehren/Hagopian) and Doctor
Walter Noehren in Hartford Connecticut. His sister Christie was born
almost exactly one year and one month before.
 |
| Jamie doesn't look too happy with what Christie is doing |
Jamie was the grandson of Rea
Irvin and Dorothy Goodwin Irvin. Rea Irvin was the creator of the iconic “Eustice
Tilley”, the top hated gentleman who graces the New Yorker magazine’s
cover most Februarys. Rea was the “art director” for the New Yorker from
its inception to well into the late 1940’s/ early 1950's.
 |
Jamie's grandfather drew this as the
first cover for the New Yorker magazine |
 |
| Christie believes Jamie is the model for one of these boys |
When Jamie was born, Walt was an intern earning his medical degree. It was difficult for the family to live on a student
doctor’s income. They moved around a bit, eventually moving to Vancouver, Washington where
Walt became one of the first doctors for the newly formed Kaiser Foundation,
while Virginia was the resident artist for the Portland Oregonian
Newspaper.
Jamie grew up alongside the Columbia river, a beautiful rural place very
close to Portland where his mother was deeply engaged with the Portland art
scene.
 |
| Home along the Columbia River |
 |
| Jamie wearing his Boy Scout tie |
 |
| Winter time on the Columbia |
Portland artists and icons, Sally
Haley (Russo) and Mike Russo were strong lifelong supporters of Virginia and
also her children. Mike and Sally were regarded as extended family, Jamie kept
his realtionship with them throughout his life, visting them and bringing them
goodies from the restaurant, until their deaths in the early 2000’s .
 |
| Sally Haley (Russo) |
 |
| Sally gives Jamie a kiss at the restaurant |
 |
| Mike Russo in his studio at home |
It was through these strong artistic connections that Jamie evolved his
own artistic interests. Jamie’s mother Virginia was an established calligrapher
alongside her career as an illustrator. Her friendship with the great Portland
calligrapher Lloyd Reynolds must have influenced Jamie, as he also became a
student of Reynolds. Jamie became
a masterful calligrapher in his own
right, he taught at the Monterey Community College for several years.
Here is an example of his calligraphy.
Jamie was 9 years old when his parents divorced, his father Walt
establishing a career in Sandy Oregon as a doctor, and mother Virginia moving to San Francisco to work for the San
Francisco Examiner. During this time Jamie and Christie would spend summers
in Newtown, Connecticut with their grandparents Rea and Dorothy. The Newtown
house was a beautiful old house with a swimming pond, ponies and plenty of land
to roam around on.
 |
| Irvin home in Newtown, Connecticut |
 |
Lunch on the patio with Grandma Dorothy, Christie,
Mom Virginia, Jamie, Cousin Millie, and Grandfather Rea |
It was a difficult time for
the family in San Francisco, Virginia was a struggling single mom with no financial
support from Walt. Walt came down one weekend
and spirited away the children while Virginia was gone, a very dark time for
our mother. In the early 1950’s, women
did not have the support or legal wherewithal they have today, our mother felt
powerless to retrieve her children. This was very devastating for Virginia and
I think it had lasting ramifications for both Jamie and Christie. Jamie made sure to keep in
contact with his mother and visited her several times a year. I have letters
our mother kept from her children at this time in their lives, it was painful
for all.
 |
This is a drawing of Christie and Jamie in the kitchen on Hyde Street, San Francisco
by Jamie's mother Virginia Irvin |
 |
| Jamie |
 |
Jamie again
|
 |
| Jamie |
Jamie did make a new life for
himself in Sandy, Oregon. His father remarried 3 times and had 6 other children
(some came with the marriages), Becky, Shelly, Lenny, Darin, Carrie and Paula.
Jamie and Christie, being the oldest
were counted on to help in all ways with the household. When Jamie was in the
military his step-mother became ill with cancer, Jamie was excused from the
military so that he could go and help raise the children. He talks of going to
school in his letters to his mother, but it was many years before he actually
did. Here are some photos courtesy of the Noehren clan.
 |
| Jamie, step-sister Paula, Walt and Christie |
 |
| Turns out Jamie almost always has a newspaper in his hands |
 |
| Here are the squatting Jamie's |
 |
| Christie and Jamie with sister and step-mother |
The ones below are from Mom when we visited Jamie and Christie about 1964. I always remember meeting Paula for the first time and being given Golden Books with fur for the fox.
 |
| Christie and Jamie |
 |
| Virginia and Jamie |
Jamie moved to Monterey as a
young adult. He worked at the iconic Clock restaurant where he met his future
wife Marie. I remember him saying to our mother that he could not believe this
young vivacious woman was interested in him. Jamie fell for Marie and loved
and admired her for the rest of his life.
They were married for 38 years but I believe they were together for
at least 40+ years.
 |
| Jamie and Marie taking their vows on their wedding day in 1979 |
 |
These are pictures of the kitchen at home
designed by Jamie |
It was such a huge
disappointment to see Jamie’s health become compromised after they sold the
restaurant. He had ideas about getting back into making stained glass
with Marie working alongside him. It’s a shame that he never got the chance.
While art took the backburner to his restaurant business, I think he had much
satisfaction with his work and the people he met through their restaurants.
I am so grateful that he and
Marie were able to come and visit with us last September. I feel very lucky to
have had this time with him. Here are some photos of our family visits with Jamie and Marie.
 |
| Early in the morning for my favorite men, Ryland, Jamie, Larry, Sam and Kaden |
Jamie was a wonderful artist,
his interests were in stained glass, sculpture, printmaking, calligraphy and architecture. Here are some examples of his art.
 |
This is a poor image of a beautiful window created by Jamie
for his mom's bathroom in San Francisco |
Jamie’s interest and
appreciation for music was life long. He’d make me these tapes filled
with eclectic music he thought I would like. I remember once when I was a
teenager, I had taken the bus down to Monterey to visit him. We were listening
to music, I think it was Leon Russell, and I said “that’s awful music!”. He
turned to me and said, “You can’t say that; you can’t say that’s awful music,
you can say “I don’t like this music”. That’s Jamie, very clear with his
beliefs. I valued him very much.
Here are some earlier photos of Jamie in my life.
 |
| 1957! Christie, Virginia with newborn me and Jamie |
 |
Dinner at Christie and Jim's
Jamie, Molly, Virginia and Christie
or
Virginia and her three children |
He was a deeply loving and
caring brother to me. Although there was 16 years’ difference in our ages I
always knew I had a brother who delighted in me. That was an incredible gift. As a child, I would look forward to his visits, his teasing ways and his tickling.
He ALWAYS asked me if I had a boyfriend, no matter how young I was! He taught
me to drive in his yellow VW bug, I
think we both have lasting memories of this! I almost killed us by doing a U-turn
and almost running into a parked camper truck at full speed.
 |
Christmas time on Willis Lane
Sam, Molly, Larry, Kaden, Ryland, Haley, Askia,
Jamie and Marie with Santa Alan in the back
|
Jamie was always a very clear
person in how he approached life and what he believed. If he felt I was not
being sensitive to something or had the wrong take on a situation he always
talked me through it. His patience with me and my growing up process were a
gift. His sweetness and genuine interest in my children, Ryland, Haley, step-son Sam and
grandson Kaden made him someone special in their lives too. And he so approved
of my sweetie Larry.
I will miss him so much.
 |
Jamie
(I used one of my favorite photos of Jamie, from our time spent in Washington,
as the source for this painting I made of him.) |
