Captain James J. Culligan of Warwick, NY, slipped away peacefully from the arms of his wife Kathleen into the arms of Lord, Jesus Christ, in his beloved house on the hill on April 5, 2024. He was 94 years old.
Born in Chicago, Ill., July 16, 1929, he was the son of Roland and Lillian (nee Winters) Culligan. He was raised in Wisconsin.
James proudly served for the U.S. Air Force then he flew for many years with Skytypers. He was a certified flight instructor, especially for aerobatic formations. He became a commercial pilot for Eastern Airlines. He was a ski instructor for many years at the local ski resorts. He was an active member of the American Legion Post 214, Warwick. He loved his family, NASCAR, and the Green Bay Packers.
James was a parishioner at St. Stephen RC Church, Warwick.
James was married to Kathleen (nee Lutz) Culligan who survives him; his four children, Jerald Culligan and his wife Jeanne, Jeffrey Culligan and his wife Lourdes, Jennifer Culligan, and Marlene Groves and her husband David; grandchildren Jay, Jason (Darcy), Jacob (Kelsey), Peter Cerullo, Marina Cerullo, Mason Groves, Hayden Groves, and Sumner Groves; great-grandchildren Paxton, Jensen, and Kasen; Kathleen’s family, Jade Solitario, Kara Solitario, Leah Solitario, Dominick Solitario and his wife Danielle, Austin Kurtz (Michelle), Carmine Rivera, Antonio Rivera, Madison Gannon, Avery Solitario, Dominick Solitario, Elizabeth and Waylon; his former wife Pia Culligan; his newly acquired four-legged friend Electra; and many good friends near and far.
A special thank you to Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties for their compassionate care.
A graveside service will be held on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, at noon at Orange County Veterans Cemetery, 111 Craigville Road, Goshen, NY.
Arrangements were made by Lazear-Smith & Vander Plaat Memorial Home, 17 Oakland Avenue, Warwick, NY. To send an online condolence, visit lsvpmemorialhome.com.