2008 Woodie Awards
Bean employees shaken by colleague's death
Mallory Edens, Page 2 Designer
Issue date: 9/5/07 Section: News
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Jimmy Dingler, a Bean employee since 1995, died after a heart attack late Monday afternoon at age 66.
The last students to leave the Bean at lunch that day found him lying on the floor in the tray disposal area when they went to put up their trays. They informed another Bean worker that he was sleeping, said Tom Morris, Bean assistant director.
Morris and other Bean employees knew something wasn't right, but Morris said he wasn't thinking the worst had happened.
"The first thing I thought was he fell," Morris said. "I called 9-1-1, and when I went up to the front, Bruce, one of our chefs, was doing mouth to mouth on him."
The Bean employees gave Dingler CPR for about 10 minutes,
Morris said, until the Fire Department came. The employees
and the ACU Police Department were the first to arrive on the scene.
The ACU Police Department received a call at 4:51 p.m. reporting the incident. Police cars, ambulances and fire trucks all rushed to the scene and transported Dingler to Hendrick Medical Center where he died shortly after arrival.
Morris said while some may not know Dingler by name, they would certainly know his face. He said Dingler was beloved, and his death has left a hole in the Bean.
"He was an institution in himself," Morris said. "Everyone here thought the world of him. It's a very sad situation for us."
Morris said Dingler did not look at the Bean as a job but as a family, as all Bean employees do.
"The students are their kids that they take care of when parents aren't around," Morris said.
Paula Hall, Baker supervisor, said the students were Dingler's
favorite part of his job.
"He loved to play tricks," Hall said. "Just to get a rouse out of you, he would pretend to get mad at you. Jimmy brought a smile to your face. He was a kidder. His favorite part of his job, I would say, was the students. He loved the camaraderie, especially the football players. He loved to tease with them."
The last students to leave the Bean at lunch that day found him lying on the floor in the tray disposal area when they went to put up their trays. They informed another Bean worker that he was sleeping, said Tom Morris, Bean assistant director.
Morris and other Bean employees knew something wasn't right, but Morris said he wasn't thinking the worst had happened.
"The first thing I thought was he fell," Morris said. "I called 9-1-1, and when I went up to the front, Bruce, one of our chefs, was doing mouth to mouth on him."
The Bean employees gave Dingler CPR for about 10 minutes,
Morris said, until the Fire Department came. The employees
and the ACU Police Department were the first to arrive on the scene.
The ACU Police Department received a call at 4:51 p.m. reporting the incident. Police cars, ambulances and fire trucks all rushed to the scene and transported Dingler to Hendrick Medical Center where he died shortly after arrival.
Morris said while some may not know Dingler by name, they would certainly know his face. He said Dingler was beloved, and his death has left a hole in the Bean.
"He was an institution in himself," Morris said. "Everyone here thought the world of him. It's a very sad situation for us."
Morris said Dingler did not look at the Bean as a job but as a family, as all Bean employees do.
"The students are their kids that they take care of when parents aren't around," Morris said.
Paula Hall, Baker supervisor, said the students were Dingler's
favorite part of his job.
"He loved to play tricks," Hall said. "Just to get a rouse out of you, he would pretend to get mad at you. Jimmy brought a smile to your face. He was a kidder. His favorite part of his job, I would say, was the students. He loved the camaraderie, especially the football players. He loved to tease with them."
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