Enjoy your retirement, Jackie Mac!

Jackie MacMullan, a top-notch journalist and the pride of Westwood, Mass.

As Jackie MacMullan retires from ESPN today, the tributes are pouring in. So I’ll add mine.

Best known for her expertise and deep love of basketball, Jackie was also a very versatile journalist that could track down stories from any sport and present them with her own trademark depth and empathy. So she’d get the high-profile assignments wherever good journalism was needed.

Thus it was that at one of the Patriots’ Super Bowls (I’m struggling to remember which one, but I believe it was the one in Indianapolis), I happened to be talking to Mike Reiss, early in his career as ESPN’s Boston writer, about how bad the wi-fi service was in the media center where we were all writing our stories.

I always tried to utilize cutting technology when I went to major events because I was generally alone from my newspaper when I was on the road, and could not afford snafus in sending my copy to Attleboro. At the time, I had invested in a personal wi-fi hotspot, and I mentioned to Mike that I’d be willing to share it. Immediately, he invited me to share ESPN Boston’s private cubicle within the media center — which was a blessing to me, because it ensured me better working conditions than being surrounded by chatty journalists from all over the world in the area of the media center that was reserved for the non-preferred outlets.

So for the entire week, I worked alongside Mike and the ever-gracious Jackie MacMullan — all of us using my wi-fi signal to meet our deadlines (and occasionally running afoul of NFL orders to not use personal wi-fi, even though the league could not provide a consistent signal). And even though I had been covering the Patriots for probably 30 years by that time, I learned a lot about preparation, dedication and professionalism by working next to them.

I also discovered that I could still have fun even while operating at a higher level, because after all, I didn’t want to embarrass myself by being a disorganized goofball while working in such close proximity to two real pros whom I respected and admired.

The thing you learn about Jackie Mac right away was that regardless of the well-deserved fame she earned throughout her career, she was still just a down-home person — dedicated and focused, yes, but still a devoted mom wanting to check in with her husband and kids during a long stretch away from them, or eager to ask me questions about the state of Massachusetts girls’ basketball in the high schools, which she knew I covered and loved.

It was one of the best working weeks of my career, and I’m glad I could be of assistance.

Enjoy retirement, Jackie. It’s fun.