Beloved brown bear Jim from the Brookfield Zoo dies at age 27

When Brittany Fitzsimmons was six years old, her great-uncle “gave” her a brown bear for Christmas.

Through the Chicago Zoological Society’s Animal Adoption donation program, Fitzsimmons in 1995 became the “parent” of a brown bear named Jim, and every year, her great-uncle renewed that donation for the bear’s care in her name. Each Christmas, Fitzsimmons looked forward to seeing new pictures of Jim as well as letters about the bear’s growth and what he’s been up to. In the summer, she’d visit the Brookfield Zoo to check in on Jim and try to tell him apart from his brother, Axhi.

“It looked like Jim was wearing a T-shirt,” she said.

The 33-year-old from Glendale Heights most recently visited Jim at the zoo this month. But she didn’t realize it would be her last.

The Chicago Zoological Society, which operates Brookfield Zoo, announced Jim’s death Wednesday. He was 27. In recent months, the bear had experienced decreased mobility to severe arthritis, which progressed to the point that veterinary staff couldn’t ensure quality of life, CZS said in a statement. Staff euthanized the bear Tuesday due to his declining death.

“As an easygoing gentle giant, Jim was definitely was one of the staff’s favorites,” said Mark Wanner, curator of mammals for CZS, in a statement. “Jim was very eager to try new food items and seemed to thoroughly enjoy his enrichment. Additionally, he voluntarily participated in his own health care during husbandry training sessions with animal care staff. This has been an incredibly difficult time for those who cared for him and he will be greatly missed.”

Jim and his brother, Axhi, arrived at the Brookfield Zoo in 1995 at six months old, rescued from southeastern Alaska after a hunter killed their mother. Jim’s full name was Kootznoowoo-Jim, after some of the people who helped rescue the two cubs. According to CZS, Kootznoowoo is a word from the Tlingit people of Admiralty Island which means “fortress of the bear,” and Jim was an animal care staff member who cared for the cubs when he worked at the Brookfield Zoo’s mammal department.

The last time Fitzsimmons saw Jim she was with her boyfriend. Together, they watched Jim and Axhi as they were fed, gnawing on cabbage and meat. They spent 15 minutes just watching them as she gushed about the bear and all she knew about him, Fitzsimmons said.

“It was just really neat to know that he was kind of, sort of mine,” she said. “You know, not really mine, but still an exciting reason to go to the zoo.”

Visitors to the zoo learned about conservation efforts for brown bears through Jim, who was a fan-favorite among guests of the zoo’s special events, CZS said. He was often photographed, most recently in the Chicago Bears’ blue and orange to mark the start of the football season.

On social media, comments poured in with memories and photos of Jim from zoo-goers and volunteers.

“I loved essentially growing up with you two and seeing you become not only fan favorites, but an amazing example of how truly majestic bears can be,” one commenter said.