JAMES HOGAN

HOGAN James Francis HOGAN "Jim" James (Jim) Francis Xavier Hogan of Centreville, VA passed away after a short COPD-related illness on Thursday, September 10, 2020 at Fair Oaks Hospital in Fairfax. Jim was the beloved husband of Karen Hogan (21 years) and previously Louise Hogan (33 years until Louise passed away); father of Daniel Hogan and Kathleen (Katie) Hogan; father-in-law of Elzbieta Hogan; grandfather of Ryan Estep, Karolina Hogan, and Patrick Hogan; son of John and Helen Hogan; brother of Rosemary Bair. Jim was born in Flushing, Queens, NY in 1941 into a large and colorful Irish family. After a few years he moved with his family into an apartment in Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY taking up residence in an apartment above a candy store. This candy store was where the "button men" of Murder, Inc. would pass their time. Next door to the candy store was a pearl necklace factory that served as a front for the Murder Inc. headquarters, and which was also where Jim had his first job as a child picking up stray pearls from the floor for 10 cents a day. A few doors down from that was the home of Joey Gallo, a Capo in the Genovese crime family. After attending the parish school of Our Lady of Loretto Catholic Church, Jim attended Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania to study chemistry on a football and wrestling scholarship. This is where Jim and Louise met. They married in 1963. Their son Dan was born in 1964, followed by Katie in 1969. Jim began his career with the Federal Government as an inspector for the Food and Drug Administration. He soon transferred to serve as a special agent for the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (which later became the Drug Enforcement Administration). He loved his career as a DEA agent, working many interesting cases and details that made for great stories that were enjoyed by family and friends later in life. He did extensive undercover work, some of which while detailed to the Philadelphia Police Department's Vice Squad. There he ran across infamous mafia figures and attended a Black Panther meeting. Jim served on the Secret Service protective detail for Edmund Muskie's Vice Presidential campaign in 1968, during which he had the pleasure of throwing a senior member of Congress down a flight of stairs after he tried to force his way through without proper identification. In 1971 Jim participated in the infamous Operation Bent Penny, an undercover effort to infiltrate the May Day demonstrations in Washington. Agents were sent into the demonstrations with no ID - only a bent penny to identify themselves to law enforcement after the planned mass arrests. Unfortunately, this secret signal had not actually been shared with the police. Fortunately, Jim was faster than enough of the protesters to avoid arrest. Later in Jim's career he participated in the death investigations of Elvis and Howard Hughes. Jim's duty stations during the course of his 31 year career included Philadelphia, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Cincinnatti and Washington, DC. After retirement, Jim served as a docent at Colvin Run Mill and at Washington National Cathedral, making many good friends that meant a great deal to him. At Colvin Run Mill Jim explained the basic machine concepts of an operational mill to countless elementary and middle school students. Jim was a gothic architecture enthusiast who traveled the world visiting cathedrals. He greatly enjoyed sharing the knowledge he gained with the many tour groups that visited National Cathedral. Jim's first wife Louise tragically passed away of cancer in 1996. Fortunately Jim later met his second love Karen, who he married in 1999. Jim was a loving father, grandfather and husband, serving as the anchor for his family during life's ups and downs. He is and will be greatly missed. A great reader and storyteller, he was always ready to help and provide counsel when sought, yet never pushed or inserted himself uninvited. He was a careful observer that encouraged those around him to be at their best. Jim loved cooking for his family, especially his grandchildren, at the regular weekend gatherings. He was also a devoted lover of cats and dogs. Greatly concerned over the current political situation in this country, he no doubt would wish to be here to cast his vote in November. A virtual memorial celebration will be held but has not yet been scheduled. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations to: https://petsmartcharities.org/.