James (Jim) Francis Lynch

James (Jim) Francis Lynch, 93, of Wake Forest, N.C., died peacefully at home on January 24, 2025. Jim was born on January 29, 1931, in Braintree, Massachusetts, and grew up in nearby Abington where he was a parishioner at St. Bridget Catholic Church.

Jim was a humble and devoted Catholic throughout his life, and after serving in the Army in the Korean War returned to Massachusetts where he joined the Trappists at St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer. As a brother he traveled to South America, where he assisted in founding and building abbeys in both Argentina and Chile, before discerning that his vocation lay outside of Trappist life. In Miami, Florida, he began work as an aircraft technician for National Airlines and continued a career with Pan Am, U.S. Airways, and American Airlines. He met his wife, Carol, in Miami, and they started a family, later moving to Raleigh.

From an early age, Jim was known for his keen wit and upbeat attitude, a sensibility he carried throughout life. He cared deeply for those in need and sought to better the world through volunteer work, including traveling to New Orleans to help relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He continued to find ways to grow in his Catholic faith throughout life, including through eucharistic adoration, as a member of the Knights of Columbus, and through travel to the Vatican, various shrines and holy sites. He loved to sing, and played the trombone and the piano, filling his home with lively tunes whenever in front of a keyboard. Jim was a loving husband, father and grandfather to seven grandchildren.

Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Howard and Anna Lynch, his brother David, and his sister Theresa. He will be profoundly missed by his wife, Carol; his brothers Jack and Edward; his daughter Kelly and son-in-law Scott (and grandchildren Madeline, John Paul, and Catherine); and his son Patrick and daughter-in-law Cara (and grandchildren Gabrielle, Evan James, James Silas, and Auberon James).

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday, January 29, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in Wake Forest, preceded by a Legion of Mary-led rosary at 10 a.m. in the church.

Memorial donations can be made to the Catholic Parish Outreach Food Pantry (catholiccharitiesraleigh.org/cpo).

Arrangements by Clancy Strickland Wheeler Funeral Home and Cremation Service, 1051 Durham Road, Wake Forest, NC 27587. (919-556-7400)

www.cswfuneralhome.com