Waterloo Region Generations
A record of the people of Waterloo Region, Ontario.

James "Jim" Nicholas

Male 1946 - 2017  (70 years)


Personal Information    |    Notes    |    Event Map    |    All    |    PDF

  • Name James "Jim" Nicholas 
    Born 16 Dec 1946  St. Thomas, Jamaica Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Eby ID Number Waterloo-183256 
    Died 10 Sep 2017 
    Cause: heart attack 
    Person ID I183256  Generations
    Last Modified 26 Jun 2024 

  • Notes 
    • LIFETIMES: Kitchener chef inspired many with his generosity
      James (Jim) Nicholas of Kitchener, born: Dec. 16, 1946 in St. Thomas, Jamaica, died: Sept. 10, 2017 of a heart attack

      Jim Nicholas had his first glimpse into the mysterious world of cooking while still a teenager living in Jamaica. There were the rich aromas emanating from the pots in the kitchen, the alchemy of mixing spices to create the perfect jerk, the satisfaction of creating something delicious from nothing more than a few vegetable, spices and meat.

      Though he didn't know it at the time, this would be the world he would spend 40 years inhabiting, a world that brought him many friends and much love as the owner and chef at Rainbow Caribbean Cuisine in downtown Kitchener. But it had been a long and windy road to get to this level of success.

      Jim grew up one of eight kids on a farm, leaving home at 18 for the town of Morant Bay, Jamaica, where he met an older couple who owned a hotel. They took Jim in, treated him as a son and gave him his first experience working in a kitchen.

      Jim had also worked as a security guard in Jamaica but he would soon look elsewhere, much further afield for a chance for a more prosperous future.

      His wife Lucinda Nicholas said Jim came to Canada in 1967 '97 finding work first as a farm labourer, then in a hotel in Wallaceburg where he made a friend from Kitchener. When the hotel was sold, his friend decided to return home and did Jim want to come too?....

      Hill, V. (2017). LIFETIMES: Kitchener chef inspired many with his generosity | TheRecord.com. TheRecord.com. Retrieved 24 September 2017, from https://www.therecord.com/whatson-story/7573932-lifetimes-kitchener-chef-inspired-many-with-his-generosity/

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 16 Dec 1946 - St. Thomas, Jamaica Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth