Classmate bio: James Lindeman

Name: James Hale Lindeman

Family: Wife Brigette, daughters Amanda (11) and Jordyn (9)

Location: Warsaw, Indiana

Three years after graduation, James Lindeman put Jonesboro in the rear-view mirror, wanting to see what was “out there.”

“On a whim, I moved to D.C. and hung out for a year and a half,” James remembers about his becoming a “nomad” at age 21. “From D.C., I packed up my Civic hatchback and made my way to Aspen, Colorado, for a year. After that, it was New Orleans for a year and a half and from there, Key West, Florida, for almost 5 years.

“Along the way, I met great people who I'm still close with today, ate a ton of great food, and had a blast seeing what else was ‘out there.’ "

James has skied some of the hardest trails at Aspen and in the Swiss Alps, jumped out of airplanes over Louisiana and Mississippi, and scuba-dived off the Florida Keys and the Grand Cayman Islands.

But he says all of that pales in importance to “being with my kids and being a great dad and husband.” He and his wife Brigette in Indiana are raising Jordyn, 9, James’ daughter from a previous relationship, and Amanda, 11, James’ stepdaughter. (Amanda is left, Jordyn right in picture below)

James is an owner/operator of 10 CiCi’s Pizza franchise units in Virginia, Maryland and Indiana. But his road to being a successful pizza entrepreneur reflects his nomadic spirt.

Besides tending bar at his many stops, James also owned a jet ski business in the Florida Keys and has been both state-licensed and nationally certified as a massage therapist. Some 13 years after high school, James earned a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University ... with the help of college credits beginning at Arkansas State and stringing through the University of New Orleans, two Florida community colleges and Florida Atlantic University.

James said that, of all the places he’s lived, his time in Key West had the most impact on his life. “It's a place I spent quality time in, a place where I was welcomed, and a place where I learned to invest and give back to relationships that will last a lifetime," he said.

As for his Jonesboro days, James said that he suspects his JHS classmates might remember that he had his own apartment at age 17, that he worked at Pizza Inn and that he once organized a trip to Six Flags in St. Louis.

“I don't know that I did too much to be remembered by, other than quietly holding my own academically and socially,” James said of his high school years. “Maybe my female classmates remember that I was always the friend and never the boyfriend, unfortunately enough for me ... who knows?”

So with both his business and family thriving, is there anything else “out there” for James?

“A (crazy) personal goal I've had for years is to graduate law school from the University of Notre Dame...maybe when I'm 50?”