Obituary of James H. Grandy

Jimmy/Dad/Papa lived life to the fullest. He loved the simple things in life, such as, spending time with his children and grandchildren. Whether it was going to water/amusement parks, sleigh riding, or just taking them for bike rides at the park, these are the memories that he cherished the most. He had a great sense of humor that he instilled in all of us. He married Mary Elizabeth Luckey on August 7, 1981. They had three living children Thomas, Jacqueline, Gillian, and one angel son Steven who heartbreakingly died after birth. When VHS cameras became a new item, he saved up money to purchase it immediately. He captured every single moment whether important or not, and to this day just took pleasure watching them over and over again. Family memories were the most important to him. He enjoyed music, dancing, fishing, good food and fun times with family and friends. When he liked a song, we had to listen to the CD on repeat in the house. How much it would madden all of us and we would complain, "this song again?" These are the times we cherish and wish we could have back now. We will now play these songs to keep his memory alive. He sure loved adventures and crazy things happen to him all the time and he was not one for sane advice. From fighting off an assailant in front of our house to then fighting with a bike rack he got caught in, only to realize the attacker had left a while before. He laughed every time telling us this story. To him fighting an attack squirrel stuck in a vent outside the house and him using a ladder that was crumbling. We all warned him not to, but he was getting that squirrel out even if he began hanging by the armpits of what was left of that ladder since it collapsed once he got up there. And to the most memorable of him taking his grandson to get fireworks because he knew it would make his grandson happy. To them then getting caught in a tornado under the firework tent and him saving his grandson's life from a pole. Through all these happy accidents, he took it with stride and saw humor in it. We always discussed these memories and just laughed because he honestly thought he was Superman and in our eyes he was. He was a selfless person and would sacrifice himself for any one he loved. When he developed Parkinson's, it took him a while to release his independence. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold on to it for long, but by God he fought that tooth and nail. He was still our hero, even if he physically could not do things like previously. From the famous lines, "there was no geese" to "what did the McDonald's sign do to you?", we knew it was time for him to stop driving. He was our Superman regardless of his limitations. Jimmy/Dad/Papa is survived by his mother Lea (George) Roomel, his brother Thomas (Anita) Grandy, his wife Mary Grandy, his 3 children Thomas Grandy, Jacqueline (Lawrence) Byrnes, and Gillian (Anthony) Daronzio, and his 3 grandchildren LJ Byrnes (18 yrs), Lily Daronzio (7 yrs) and Anthony Daronzio (4 yrs). He will sorely be missed, and he was one of the good ones. In his words by Frank Sinatra, "I did it my way!" In lieu of flowers, please send donations in James' honor to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.