He was born on July 16, 1928 in New York City a son of James P. and Catherine O’Reilly Nolan. He graduated from high school and entered the Franciscan Monastery where he studied for one year.
James joined the Navy and was stationed at Brunswick Naval Air Station. He met Bernadette Lamarre at a dance in Brunswick in 1952 and they were married on June 27, 1953. After his discharge from the Navy he became a firefighter at BNAS and served there for twenty years. He went on to work as a custodian at Brunswick High School and then L.L. Bean’s.
He was a communicant of St. John the Baptist and St. Charles Borromeo Churches, and had volunteered for many years at St. John’s Bazaar, and was a Eucharistic Adoration minister for several years.
He was a coin collector for sixty years and was a member of the Brunswick Coin Club. He loved this hobby and attended his last coin show in Brunswick in February of this year. He also loved to travel and took trips to California, Washington, Florida, Ireland and Scotland.
In 2011 he moved to an apartment at the Highlands in Topsham and enjoyed their many activities. He especially liked playing Bingo and poker, and had the nickname “Lucky Jim.”
He is predeceased by his wife Bernadette who died in May 1999; and a sister, Mary Urso of Pasadena, California.
Surviving are two sons, Kevin Nolan and his wife Diane of Durham, and Michael Nolan of Kingston, Washington; a daughter, Catherine Carmichael and her husband Paul of Litchfield; a brother, Thomas Nolan of Torrance, California; two grandchildren, Kathleen Leahy and her husband Jon of Westbrook and Robert Wells of Topsham; many nieces and nephews; other special people are Cheryl Hart of Scarborough, Mike Webster of Kingston, Washington, Joanna Johnson of Bath, Josephine Atlas of Topsham, Mia Clark of Topsham, and Jean Wells of Woolwich, as well as many friends. All will miss his laughter and wit.
Visiting hours will be 6 to 8:00pm Wednesday, April 17, 2013 at Demers-Desmond Funeral Home, 34 Cushing St., Brunswick. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10am Thursday at All Saints Parish, St. John the Baptist Church, 39 Pleasant St., Brunswick. Burial will follow in St. John’s Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made in his memory to CHANS, 60 Baribeau Dr., Brunswick 04011.
To express your thoughts and condolences with the family, please visit www.desmondfuneralhomes.com.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less