Though Jim Gill left Breckenridge roughly 20 years ago, eventually settling in Colorado Springs, his mark on the town has not faded.

The former manager of Peak 9 at Breckenridge Ski Resort and founder of the Summit Foundation died July 1, at the age of 66, following complications from non-invasive cancer surgery, family members said.

But his memory lives on in Breckenridge where he lived for approximately 20 years in the 1970s and 80s.

“He was just a good guy, a great friend and a very kind man,” Gill’s friend Charlie McCormick said. “He had a wonderful sense of humor.”

Those who knew Gill said he loved tennis, skiing, his job with Breckenridge Ski Resort and his two daughters.

Born in Washington, DC to a military family, Gill moved often when he was younger, at one point living as far away as Japan. After graduating from Colorado State University and serving in the U.S. Air Force, he settled in Breckenridge the early 1970s when he took a position with the ski area. Over the years he was promoted through the ranks from ski patrol to lift supervisor and eventually to mountain manager.

“He was a gentle guy that always had a smile on his face and was always willing to help,” said Dennis Kuhn, who worked with Gill at Breckenridge.

In the early 1990s he left Breckenridge for Jackson Hole, Wyo., with his family. He would eventually return to Colorado, though never to Summit County, but he was not forgotten by his friends here or by the community where he started what is still one of the most prominent and influential philanthropic organizations in the county.

A memorial service is set for 10 a.m. today at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Colorado Springs. The family is asking that any donations be made to the Jackson Hole Leadership Program in place of flowers.