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Funeral Home Information
Newcomer Funeral Home - Centerville Chapel
820 Miamisburg-Centerville Rd
Dayton, OH
45459
KENNEDY, James Joseph "Jim"
James "Jim" Joseph Kennedy, age 91, of Bellbrook, Ohio, passed away peacefully on September 22, 2022. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Marcelline; six children, Erin (John Fitzharris) of Phoenix; Kevin (Julie) of Minneapolis; Noreen (Bill Moore) of Lebanon, OH; Sean of Memphis; Colleen of Dayton; and Brian (Sharon) of Marysville, OH, plus grandchildren (Brianna, Murphy, Sarah, Liza, Laurel, Logan, Shea, Shannon, Jack, Bridget, Kathleen, Connor, Vida) and his first great-grandchild, Oren.
Jim was born in Youngstown, Ohio, to John Kennedy, from Liverpool, England, and Bridget Hyland, from County Galway, Ireland. After his honorable discharge from the Air Force, Jim met his future wife, Marcelline. After Jim graduated from Duquesne University, he and Marcelline married and started a family.
Jim began his career in public accounting but found great joy working as a financial planner for Investors Diversified Services (IDS), a company that eventually was purchased by American Express and is now Ameriprise Financial. In 1976, Jim was promoted to Dayton Divisional Manager and the family moved to Centerville, Ohio.
Jim retired in 1990 and stayed active, spending hours in his workshop "making sawdust." He was a 30-plus year volunteer at the Catholic Social Services food pantry and spearheaded a program that collected and reused plastic grocery bags, saving the food pantry significant expense each year. He was an active member of the St. Leonard Faith Community and never said no when called upon to help.
He'll be remembered for his sharp sense of humor, his kind and charitable spirit, his ability to talk to anyone about anything, and his love of all things Irish - God made the Irish #1. What he cherished above all was his family. He often said, "I'm the luckiest guy who ever lived."
Jim's friends and family are invited to a celebration of his life on Wednesday, September 28 (his birthday), at St. Leonard, 8100 Clyo Rd., Centerville. Visitation begins at 11 a.m., followed by a funeral mass at 12 p.m. and luncheon (open to all). In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Catholic Social Services of the Miami Valley, 922 W. Riverview Ave., Dayton, OH 45402 or Ohio's Hospice of Dayton, 324 Wilmington Ave., Dayton, OH 45420.
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