‘A legend on the river’: Friends and family mourn longtime Port Barrington Marina owner Jimmy Forbes

A memorial will be held Saturday for James “Jimmy” Forbes, the longtime owner of Port Barrington Marina on the Fox River who was described by those who knew him as “genuine,” a “sweetheart” and always willing to help.

“Jimmy was a great man and a legend on the river,” said Bonnie Misk-Haber owner of the Broken Oar Marina-Bar & Grill in Port Barrington, located across the river from the marina Forbes has owned since 1976.

Forbes, 73, of Crystal Lake died Aug. 27. A visitation is planned for 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday with a prayer service at 4 p.m. at Willow Funeral Home & Cremation Care 1415 W. Algonquin Road in Algonquin.

Misk-Haber, who owns the Broken Oar with her husband Mike Haber, said Forbes was “a genuine guy ... and just a sweetheart, big supporter of the Oar.” She also described him as a “straight shooter” and “an iconic member” of the Lower River community.

“His death hit home for everyone on the Lower River. Even if you didn’t keep your boat at [the marina], everyone knew who Jimmy was,” she said, adding that losing him is “heart-wrenching.”

Mike Haber said he was glad he spent some time fishing with his friend of more than 30 years in Florida this winter just before Forbes learned he had an aggressive form of cancer. Haber recalled spending time with Forbes over the years, riding snowmobiles together on the frozen Fox River and fishing in Florida.

“He was always willing to help and didn’t always charge you,” Mike Haber said. “He was just a good guy.”

Forbes’ widow, Linda, described her life with him as “wonderful.” That life included lots of traveling, drag racing, motorcycle riding, boating, snowmobiling and winters in Florida, where he had his own airplane and hangar. She rode motorcycles with her husband and he taught her to drag race; she won many competitions, she said. The couple were due to celebrate 54 years of marriage on Oct. 30.

“We did a lot of things,” she said.

But it also was a life of hard work.

The marina began in a different location, in Lake Barrington, before Forbes moved the business to its current location in 1998 on land owned by Forbes’ family since 1836, she said. Over the years, the business has changed and grown. They’ve sold snowmobiles, trailers, then boats, and operated the marina. Boats launch into the river from the marina, where they also store up to 125 boats during the summer and 300 in the winter. At one time, the Forbes’ family owned 130 acres. After the McHenry County Conservation District acquired about half of the land the family now has 65, Linda Forbes said.

“We started from scratch,” Linda Forbes said. “We have been in business 48 years, and the only reason is because he was such a good person. So many marinas go belly-up because they have to have it super, super fancy and overcharge, and we just don’t do that, and [that’s] why we were in business so long.”

Forbes also was a mechanic who often worked side jobs and helped those in need including by doing mechanical work for free. During the infamous blizzard of 1979, the couple drove around on snowmobiles rescuing people trapped in their cars, his wife said.

“There are so many memories,” his wife said. “I think my best memory was the day I married him.”

Forbes’ son, James “J.T.” Forbes, said his father shared his love for all his activities and the marina with him. J.T., who will continue running the business, recalled his dad teaching him to play golf and getting his first hole-in-one at age 10. He also recalled his 16th birthday when his dad gifted him his beloved 1970 Mercury Comet GT which he had drag raced in. Before the Comet, his dad raced in a 1966 Ford Fairlane GT, his son said.

“He taught me everything,” J.T. said. “I’m going to miss [our] conversations and spending time with him fishing. We’ve done so many fishing trips, and everything.”

J.T. also recalled his dad taking him to a private fishing camp in Canada the first week of first grade. He said his dad always told him how much he enjoyed running the business and the serenity of the area. His father would often say, “I just know I can look out to the west and that view is never going to change,” J.T. Forbes recalled. “He is like a household name around here. Everybody knows him.”

He said often “random people” approach him and start talking about his dad. Forbes recalled recently someone telling him: “‘I know your dad since back in the ’70s. He sold me a snowmobile.’ So many stories. That’s what is going to keep me going. The stories. I miss him. I miss the time spent. It’s just sad the way that everything happened to him.”

Randy Kief, owner of Kief’s Reef on the river in McHenry, said although he did not know Forbes “very well,” he does know Forbes was an advocate for the river and “he was an amazing guy, willing to help and share everything that he had. … I just know there was no one that has said anything bad about that man.” Kief added that customers at his bar often share stories about Forbes and his “random acts of kindness.”

“I just know he was one of the greatest guys on the Lower River,” Kief said.

James “Jimmy” Forbes also is survived by his daughter, Jody (Wayne) Chittick; his grandchildren, Carson, Caden and Vera; his brother, Bruce Bossow; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; his three sisters, Vera, Julie and Betty; his sister-in-law, Patricia Bossow; and his brother-in-law, Dennis Golladay.