James Francis Lacey

WILLIMANTIC

James (Jim) Francis Lacey, 90, passed away at home on August 28, 2024. From his book, Serendipity: Impromptu Reflections, he records I grew up in Brooklyn in the Golden Age before the beloved Dodgers left for Tinseltown. Taking the subway to school from my parents walk-up apartment in Bay Ridge, I became the victim of a classical education under the auspices of the Jesuits at Brooklyn Prep and St. Peters College, where I majored in philosophy, English, and (well, almost) mathematics. After a year at the University of Bern with a Swiss government grant, I was the first teaching assistant in the English department at Boston College. With an M.A. almost in hand, I did a stint as an artillery officer at Fort Benning, Georgia, returned to New York to marry Bobbi, the love of my life, then got a job teaching English at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, and began to take graduate courses at NYU. After a year of research in Germany and (finally!) finishing my Ph.D., I found a home at Eastern Connecticut State College, where I initiated an American Studies program, chaired the English department, and, during my final ten years there, directed the honors program. Barbara and I celebrated our 65th wedding anniversary in 2023. We have two children, Christopher and Elizabeth, both with doctorates in the sciences and eight grandchildren. . . In conclusion, Jimmy says he lived a life, however flawed. I have loved, I have cherished friends, I have gladly learned and gladly taught. If I have any advice to offer my children and grandchildren, it is to enjoy the good things and not regret those that might have been. I am indeed fortunate to have shared with a loving wife and family so much joy during our brief sojourn together under the sun.

There are no calling hours and burial will be private. For an online memorial guestbook, please visit www.potterfuneralhome.com.

James (Jim) Francis Lacey