DPS Mourns the Passing of Jim Atkinson
We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of our colleague Jim Atkinson, Penn Medicine’s chief of security and parking.
We would like to share the below message from Kevin Mahoney, CEO, University of Pennsylvania Health System and Keith Kasper, EVP & CFO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System.
| We write today to share the sad news of the passing of Jim Atkinson, Penn Medicine’s longtime chief of security and parking. For the many of us who had the privilege to know Jim well, he was someone who made us all better. He exemplified the values and ideals of Penn Medicine through his commitment to the organization and to the people who worked beside him. He was a kind, compassionate man, and he brought rigor and care to all his work. Jim was the quintessential Penn Medicine employee.
During two decades of profound transformation that saw the site of the former Philadelphia Civic Center become one of the nation’s most vibrant academic medical corridors, Jim made an imprint on every Penn Medicine building project, from the evolution of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania to the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine and the Smilow Center for Translational Research to the Pavilion. Recognizing that ensuring the safety of our faculty, staff, patients, and visitors is a cornerstone of each facility, he brought careful expertise to security planning, from personnel training to robust systems of cameras, alarm contacts, and in more recent years, the rollout of advanced weapons detection systems across the health system. Through each project, “Jim was always brainstorming on how to make the community safer,” said his longtime collaborator, Maureen Rush, who retired in 2021 from her role as Penn’s Vice President for Public Safety and Superintendent of the Penn Police. “He was always there for us, no matter what time of the day or night, to lend his support.” Jim’s calm and assured leadership made him a trusted sounding board on matters large and small, modeling the importance of consensus-building across the growing organization and an impeccable attention to detail. “Everyone knew you could give him a call and he would tell you exactly what you needed to hear to do your job well,” recalled HUP Security Director Joe Forte. “It didn’t have to be a long telephone call, but he knew exactly how to handle it – from the politics of who to get buy-in from to the logistics of how to address the issue.” Jim came to Penn Medicine in 1994, following a post as director of Human Resources and Head of Security for the former Penn Tower Hotel – now the site of the Pavilion. Before his transition to the private sector, Jim was a Clayton, NJ, police officer, followed by work with the New Jersey State Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In addition to his steadfast support of security staff and their vital work protecting patients and staff, he was a strong advocate for parking staff and the unique challenges they faced as the campus expanded. Our hearts go out to Jim’s many colleagues and friends across Penn Medicine and to his family. We send condolences to his wife Marie Mattera, who has also made a career at Penn Medicine, serving as director of the Office of the Executive Vice President of the University for the Health System and Dean of the Perelman School of Medicine. Jim made an incredible impact on our institution. As we move forward, let us be lifted up by knowing our efforts link directly to his inspiring legacy. |
|
|
Kevin B. Mahoney Chief Executive Officer, University of Pennsylvania Health System |
Keith Kasper Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, University of Pennsylvania Health System |