JAMES C. FOLEY SR.

MIDDLEBURY — James C. Foley Sr. passed away peacefully at his home in EastView, Middlebury, Vt. on April 16, 2023, surrounded by loving members of his family. Jim was born Feb. 10, 1930, the son of Hannah Frederica Foley (Hunt) and James John Foley of Walden, N.Y.

Jim graduated from Walden (N..Y) High School, Colgate University (Phi Beta Kappa), and Yale Law School (Order of the Coif), and then served in the U.S. Navy as an intelligence officer attached to ship’s company of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard, ending his military career in 1957. He married the love of his life Saraann (Sally) Meehan Foley in 1953 during his last year of law school. He joined his first law firm, Chadbourne, Parke, Whiteside and Wolff, in New York City in 1958, where he was an associate attorney, and then moved to California in 1961, where he then worked as Assistant General Counsel to North American Aviation, Inc.

Jim and Sally raised their four children (two girls and two boys) in southern California until the family made the bold move to relocate the whole clan to Middlebury, Vt., in 1972, where Jim agreed to join his Yale Law School classmate, Chester S. Ketcham (Chet), in the Middlebury law practice then known as Underwood, Lynch & Ketcham. Wynn Underwood then moved on to become a Vermont Supreme Court Justice, Chet Ketcham became the Addison County Probate Judge, and Jim and Tom Lynch joined forces with another Middlebury attorney, John Deppman, to form Deppman & Foley, P.C., now known as Lynch & Foley, P.C. It wasn’t until Jim reached his early eighties that he finally retired from the practice of law.

Jim was an avid reader and enjoyed skiing, sailing, jogging, and generally being in the outdoors. Otherwise, most days, one would typically find Jim dressed in a coat and tie, following in the footsteps of his father-in-law, Thomas G. Meehan. Jim was also a faithful member of the St. Mary’s parish and also enjoyed serving on a number of Addison County community boards and committees.

Jim is survived by his wife of almost 70 years, Sally, who continues to reside at EastView, Middlebury, Vt. Jim is also survived by his children and their spouses: Meghan Williamson (Foley) and her husband, Doug of New Haven, Vt.; Catherine Foley and her husband, William Hartnett of Bronxville, N.Y., and Wilson, Wyo.; James (Jim) Foley Jr. and his wife, Stephanie of Ave Maria, Fla., and Salisbury, Vt.; and Mark Foley and his wife, Brenda of Manchester, N.H. Jim is also survived by eleven grandchildren: Heather Kvasnak, Andrea Kvasnak, Ethan Kvasnak, Conor Hartnett, Michael Hartnett, Thomas Hartnett, Chad Foley, Ryan Foley, Patrick Foley, Katelyn Foley-LaMoncha, and Benjamin Foley. Last but not least, Jim is also survived by five great-grandchildren. Jim was predeceased by his only sibling, sister Joanne (affectionately known as “Dodie”) Spellman.

Jim’s life will be celebrated at a Catholic Mass at St. Mary’s Church in Middlebury, Vt., on Friday, April 21, at 11 a.m., followed by a burial at the St. Mary’s Cemetery adjacent to the Middlebury College campus. A reception will follow.

In lieu of flowers, donations to Addison County Home Health and Hospice (254 Ethan Allen Hwy, New Haven, VT 05472, www.achhh.org) would be greatly appreciated, as they provided loving care to Jim in his final days.

The family would also like to acknowledge and express their deep appreciation for the compassion and skill that EastView, and in particular the GardenSong staff, exhibited to Jim and Sally to keep them safe and happy in recent years.

Arrangements under the direction of Sanderson-Ducharme Funeral Home.

Online condolences at www.sandersonfuneralhome.com. ◊