Jeff McLeman

Jeff McLeman passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Tuesday, January 21, 2020 of an

anoxic brain injury after a fall at home. (see below for exact details).

Jeff was born in Arlington, MA and raised in the New England area, but his career transferred

him to the Pacific NW in the 90s. He would go on to work for a multitude of tech companies,

including being an integral part of many start-ups. It was another start-up that brought him back

home to the Boston area in June of 2019.

Jeff always had an unrelenting passion for technology, continually educating himself and

working with new ideas. He had an impeccable work ethic, an unwavering sense of integrity, and

loved to provide mentorship and guidance to anyone who would ask. If you were someone near

and dear to him, he would go to the ends of the earth for you. That is just who he was.

Jeff enjoyed, in no particular order, prog rock music, travel, good wine, his dogs, old cars, British

tv, Scotch, and a good dirty joke. He had a laugh that made you laugh along with him. He had a

passion for amateur radio since childhood, which he maintained as a hobby to this day. His brief

time in the Air Force made use of his radio knowledge and had him deployed with the NSA on

what will probably always remain classified missions.

In addition to his wife, Stefanie Preston, Jeff is survived by his adult son, Ian McLeman; his

brother Scott McLeman and his wife Ginya; his brother Jamie McLeman and his wife Maureen;

and his sister Donna Jones and her partner John. He had three nieces (Amanda, Sarah, and Emi),

and three nephews (Drew, Kyle, and Josh).

He will be missed more than can even be expressed in words.

An informal memorial service and celebration of life will be held at the Blake Chelmsford

Funeral Home on Saturday, February 1, 2020 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Arrive any time you

wish.

The medical details:

Saturday evening, January 18th , Jeff suffered a fall at home. He was standing on a chair, and

apparently lost consciousness, falling forward, and hitting his head on the floor. The impact

caused severe trauma to his brain stem, fracturing C1 and C2 of his spine, and dissecting a

vetebral artery near the fractures. He immediately lost consciousness, and struggled to maintain a

pulse once the paramedics arrived and initiated CPR. He was taken to the closest hospital, where

a CT scan confirmed the C1/C2 injury and paralyzation. He remained in the ICU overnight, not

regaining consciousness. Throughout the night, Stef remained hopeful as he seemed to open his

eyes slightly as she stroked his face and talked to him.

Sunday evening, January 19th , Jeff was transferred via MediFlight to the neuro ICU at Tufts

Medical Center in Boston, a top facility. There, he showed no signs of improvement.

Monday, January 20th , neurologists feared the worst. He would not recover.

Tuesday, January 21st , after numerous manual tests and a CT scan were run to confirm the

doctors suspicions, Jeff was pronounced dead at 4:02 pm. The family made the decision to

donate his organs. He would have been proud that in the wake of this horrific tragedy, multiple

other lives may have been saved.

Wednesday, January 22nd , donor recipients were located and surgery to perform organ removal

began, but was ultimately aborted. The doctors found numerous tumors called benign multi-

cystic mesothelioma masses near his colon and intestines. These are extremely rare in men, but if

not found in the early benign stage, quickly turn into aggressive cancer.

Jeff may have been on his way to a whole different painful path. We can only take solace in the

fact that he didnt suffer.

Service Details
Visitation
When
February 1, 2020 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Location
Blake Chelmsford Funeral Home
Address
24 Worthen Street
Chelmsford, MA 01824