James L. Browne

James Lawrence Browne, 83, of West Milford, NJ (or Masonville, NY - depends who's asking), passed away, unexpectedly, but inevitably -after many years of declining health, where the simple act of living each day presented challenges that many would have found insurmountable.
His trademark, though, was his remarkable resilience - of a kind that routinely dumbfounded doctors, in resolute defiance of their most dire predictions. A toughness honed as a seventeen-year-old U.S. Marine, and forged in the relentlessly raging fires of the South Bronx, where, in 1968, he began a career with the FDNY. He retired as a Lieutenant, in Morningside Heights, but did so reluctantly, and only due to Illness, the ravages of which he would battle, for the next twenty-nine years.
He was a complicated man, and a genuine, old-school, tough cookie, with the tenderest of hearts, beneath it all, and he will be greatly missed.
He is survived by his sons, Kevin (wife Kelly), Jim (partner Alessandra), and Brian (wife Pam), his three beloved granddaughters, Julia, Ciara, and Ava, as well as his former spouse, Ann.
James also leaves behind his steadfastly supportive brother, Michael Browne (wife Janet), and sister-in-law, Breda.
His many nieces, nephews, and their children were a tremendous source of joy for James, and he took great pleasure in watching them grow into caring, accomplished adults, as their distinct personalities and talents revealed themselves, along the way.
James was predeceased by his father, Patrick "Jim," his mother, Julia, and his youngest brother, John.
Although he seemed to possess nine lives, James was most closely aligned with canine companions and, in his later years, he was absolutely inseparable from his English Setters, who were, for him, a constant source of comfort, amusement, delight, and finely-feathered tumbleweeds of hair. He is survived by his canine compadre of nine years, Outlaw, whom he dearly loved and enthusiastically fed. Despite his name, he is a very good boy.
James's reservoir of generosity, devotion, and concern for those that he loved was unfathomably deep, and there was no favor, too great for him to grant, regardless of the daily challenges, by which he was then beset. The currency that he valued most highly was the love of his family, and nothing brought him greater satisfaction than helping them to fulfill their dreams, while nothing brought him more happiness than time spent together, whenever his strength or diminished reserves of energy allowed. With his passing, that energy has become eternal, living on in all those that loved him.
A visitation and memorial remembrance will take place on Friday, February 9, from 3:00 PM to 8:00 PM.