JOHN C. FIRMIN

FIRMIN, John C. Of Somerville, passed away March 23 at the age of 74. He was the beloved partner of Dinah Starr, the loving father of John Firmin of Fayetteville, Arkansas and Moira Halloran Kuhn of Petaluma, California, the loving grandfather of Billie Rose Firmin and Aila Kuhn, and dear brother of Rob Firmin of Kensington, California and Carolyn Firmin of San Francisco, California. The son of John Crites Firmin and Margaret Child Firmin, John grew up in Findlay, Ohio. John attended Lawrence College and went on to receive his BA from the University of Wisconsin. After a year at Wisconsin Law School he completed his legal education at the Georgetown Law Center. John had a long and varied career in law and business, working in Boston and Philadelphia as an attorney in the legal services field, and later turning to the business field with the family business in Ohio and then founding and running a company in the San Francisco area. John married Nancy Pattullo while in college. They had a son, John Firmin, and that marriage ended in divorce. John married again while living in Ohio, to Maribeth Halloran. They had a daughter, Moira Firmin. John's second marriage also ended in divorce. In 2006, John came to the Boston area to be with Dinah Starr, whom he had met while attending Georgetown Law School. They were companions and loved each other up until his death. John had a vibrant presence, a sense of adventure, and a love of life. In his twenties, he took a motorcycle trip alone across the country. He enjoyed traveling and had been to Europe, Bermuda, the Virgin Islands, Cuba, Mexico and Hong Kong. He had a short stint living on a boat (Golden Rule) moored in the Santa Barbara California harbor. He graduated from the Bondurant race car driving school and was an ardent car enthusiast. He hunted, fished, dressed smartly and loved to cook and entertain. He played chess and enjoyed movies, music and art. In his later years, John took great solace in a garden he created in his backyard at the house he and Dinah Starr shared in Somerville. John had a large and generous heart. He cared deeply for family, was proud of his children, and kept up with friends, both close and distant. He was a loving and supportive partner. He was deeply grateful to the skillful and compassionate medical professionals at MGH who cared for him in his last years. A Memorial Service will be held at the Cambridge Friends Meeting, 5 Longfellow Park, Cambridge, on July 27 at 2 pm. Contributions may be made in John's name to the American Civil Liberties Union (www.aclu.org 1 888 567 2258) or to the Natural Resources Defense Council (www.nrdc.org 212 727 2700) To view a longer obituary or leave an online message of condolence, please visit www.keefefuneralhome.com