James F. Donohue

1934 - 2019

James "Jim" Fitzgerald Donohue, age 85, formerly of Scituate, passed away peacefully on October 2, 2019, in the loving company of his daughter Debbie Discher. James was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Muriel. James is survived by his two daughters, Cathy Brittingham of Wake Forest, N.C., and Debbie Discher of Newton, N.H.; two grandchildren, Daniel and Ben Brittingham of Wake Forest, N.C.; a sister, Sheila Ross of Westlake, Ohio, and her children, Mike Ross of Ann Arbor, Mich., and Jody Ross of Valley City, Ohio. On Muriel's side of the family, James is survived by brothers-in-law, David Lyford of Greene, N.Y., and Winston Lyford of East Freetown; sisters-in-law, and numerous nieces and nephews who remember him as a fun-loving uncle with a great sense of humor. He was a journalist, novelist, and public relations specialist. He was also a devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend to many. James was born in 1934, in New York City. His father was Harold J. Donohue, a hotel manager. His mother was Josephine Hamel Donohue, a homemaker. He received a BA in Philosophy from St. Mary's University in Baltimore, Md. James began working as a newspaper reporter in Gainesville, Ga., in 1959, and worked for newspapers in North Carolina, for The Boston Globe and for The Associated Press. He was a reporter and managing editor of magazines published by Cahners Publishing Co. in Boston and was a columnist for the Mariner weekly newspapers published in southeastern Massachusetts. While he was working as a public relations specialist for Honeywell's EDP Division in Newton, in the late 1960s, James won a Silver Anvil, the highest award given by the Public Relations Society of America, for work on Honeywell's project to teach computer programming to inmates at Walpole State Prison. James wrote a novel, Spitballs and Holy Water, that was published by Avon Publishing Co. in 1977, and which won several awards including for best fiction based on historical fact by the West Coast Review of Books. James fell in love with Muriel Estelle Lyford in Greensboro, N.C., while she was attaining a BA in Psychology from Greensboro College, and he was working as a journalist for the Greensboro Times. They were happily married for 51 years beginning in 1965, and they lived a great life in Scituate for 46 years. There will be a funeral Mass at St. Christine's Parish, 1295 Main Street, Marshfield, on December 28 at 10 a.m. A reception will immediately follow the funeral Mass. All are welcome to the Mass and reception. In lieu of flowers, tax-deductible memorial donations in James' name may be made to Scituate Friends of Music, c/o Mr. William Richter, Scituate High School, 606 C.J. Cushing Highway, Scituate, MA 02066. Checks should be made payable to Scituate Friends of Music. Richardson-Gaffey Funeral Home 781-545-0196