The late Jim Bennett was just one of those guys whose voice was not loud and whose actions were not those of someone who liked the spotlight.

Yet, he seemed to be the glue for a lot of things and when he died last week of colon cancer at the age of 53, some people felt broken.

For many, his was the familiar face at Austin Youth Hockey, the guy who wanted to be near the sport his sons loved. He served as president, vice president and director of tournaments for the organization.

Others knew him as president of Old 218, the Austin company that stitches and prints caps and clothing, and sells other promotional items.

But no matter where you knew him, he was the same with everyone: He was a storyteller who loved to tell a good joke; he was the guy who had all the hockey kids over to his house for a meal.

“Jim was the guy who was full of information, who knew something about everything,” said his younger brother, Tony.

Jim and his brothers — that also includes Joe — were always involved in the business, founded by their father, Bob, from the time they were young kids. They traveled with Bob on occasion; in those years, he sold promotional items door to door.

There never seemed to be much question as to whether or not they would work in the business. And Jim was “always the leader,” Tony said.

Jim’s family was the most important thing to him. Tony recalled that Jim and his wife Kelly’s oldest son, Jacob, was just a little kid when he came home from school with a sign-up sheet for youth hockey. Jacob, 25, and his younger brothers, Luke, 23, and Sam, 19, all played hockey even though Jim never played the sport himself.

“He just wanted to be with his sons when they played,” said Tony, and that opened a whole other world for Jim.

“If he wasn’t here (at Old 218), he was there,” at the arena, said his father, Bob.

Brandi Halsey knew Jim for 15 years as a fellow hockey parent. Halsey said Jim was “the go-to-guy” when anything was needed at the area — a mouth guard for a boy who had lost his; a jersey, equipment.

“He would fix everything,” she said. “And he was funny. He always had a joke to tell, a funny story.”

She added she would miss their talks, the reminiscing about the away tournaments when their boys were young, the traveling and the hockey games.

Blake Halsey, 19, who also played hockey with his brother, Cole, recalled the team dinners at the Bennett home, the camaraderie of its families and Jim’s talks to young kids.

“He was inspirational,” he said. “But he told it like it was, too. We appreciated that.”

It came as no surprise to many when hockey families had their own way of thanking Jim for his friendship and fellowship. When Brandi Halsey organized a benefit for Jim two years ago, enough money was raised to send Jim to New York for cancer treatment.

And, in recent weeks as Jim neared his end, hockey families lined up again, bringing hot meals each night to the Bennett house.

For Halsey, it was a natural course of things.

“You feel helpless when a friend has cancer, so you need to do something for them,” she said.

“Jim did so much of us and we will miss him so much. Someone said it best — they said, ‘Jim was everyone’s hockey dad.’”

Get tested for colon cancer

Tony Bennett said that his brother, Jim, would urge everyone to be tested for colon cancer with a colonoscopy. For more on the procedure, go to: http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/colonoscopy/basics/definition/prc-20013624