James Gregory Finn Sr.
BATH – James Gregory Finn Sr., 88, died Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, at HillHouse Assisted Living in Bath. Born in Lewiston on Nov. 23, 1937, he was the son of John A. Finn, Jr., and Mary (Ault) Finn. After graduating from Lewiston High School in 1956, he studied at Saint Michael’s College in Winooski, Vermont, and the University of Maine at Portland. He served in the U.S. Army for two years, mostly in France.
He began his long career at Bath Iron Works in 1969, serving as shop steward and in other elected roles in the IAM Local S6 union. His union service was an expression of his lifelong desire to represent the underdog and bring people together around a common cause. Following his retirement from “the yard” in 2004, he continued this service as a mediator with the Maine Workers’ Compensation Board.
Jim met Joann C. Mullaney, a nurse originally from Cincinnati, on Friday, Nov. 13, 1970, at the Sand Bar in Old Orchard Beach. They were married in Old Orchard on Feb. 20, 1971, at Saint Margaret Church. They lived briefly in South Portland and Lewiston before planting their roots in Bath’s South End in 1973. A devoted family man and history buff, Jim loved sharing stories of his ancestors’ five-generation roots in Lewiston and Auburn.
A lifelong Catholic, Jim was an active parishioner of Saint Mary’s Church in Bath for 52 years, singing bass in the choir for more than three decades. He was a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus, and took particular satisfaction in distributing more than 1000 donated rosaries on the church’s windowsills in recent years. Jim and Joann were invested as members of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem in 2017. Jim sang in the Oratorio Chorale for several years, and in retirement sang with his friend Joe Grace in the care facilities in Bath and Brunswick.
Predeceased by his parents, his brothers John C., William, and Charles, and Charlie’s wife Patricia, Jim is survived by his wife, Joann C. Finn of Bath; their children, Kathleen Nolette (husband Michael) of Dixfield; James Jr. (wife Navis Bermudez) of Washington, D.C.; Eileen Finn (husband Amos Latteier) of Vancouver, B.C.; and Rev. Patrick Finn of Windham; his sister Mary Jane Poulin of Geneva, Ill.; his sisters-in-law Sharon Finn of Peabody, Mass., and Suzanne Finn of Portland; his grandchildren, Lea and Neil Nolette, Frankie Finn-Latteier, and John A. Finn III; along with many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.
Visiting hours will be on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, from 4-6 p.m., at David E. Desmond & Son Funeral Home (638 High Street, Bath, ME 04530). Bishop James Ruggieri will celebrate Jim’s Funeral Mass at 1 p.m., on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, at Saint Mary’s Church of All Saints Parish (144 Lincoln Street, Bath, ME 04530). Burial will take place in the spring at Mount Hope Cemetery in Lewiston in the spring.
To share your thoughts and condolences with the family, please visit http://www.desmondfuneralhomes.com.
Donations in Jim’s memory are suggested to the All Saints Parish or Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul Maintenance endowment funds of the Catholic Foundation of Maine (510 Ocean Avenue, Portland, ME 04103) or the Saint Joseph’s College of Maine Community Rising fund (278 Whites Bridge Road, Standish, ME 04084)