James A. Roach, Jr.

James A. Roach, Jr., passed away on September 17, 2019 after fighting cancer.  He was a longtime resident of Ivyland and, lately, Warminster.  He was the beloved son of James A. and Betty A. (nee Finney) who predeceased him.  He is survived by his sister, Carol E. Mattes, of Fairfax, VA (George).

Jim was active in community service for over 40 years.  He was a life member of Warminster Ambulance Company and received the Burpee award for recognition of the corpsman of the year.  He also volunteered for Warrington and Lower Bucks Ambulance Companies.

He was third generation member of the Ivyland Fire Company.  He fought the fires at both the Ivyland Inn and Ivyland Town Hall.  He happily took the role of Santa Claus and rode the fire truck through the streets while giving candy to the children of the borough.

He was active in the Pennsylvania Jaycees where he was vital to the fundraising projects and participated in regional and national councils.  Recreationally, he was a life member of the Liberty Bell chapter of Volkssporting Association of America and was a member of the Hatboro Players.  He also participated in organization for the Special Olympics.

Jim was initiated into the craft of Masonry in 1992 at WK Bray #410 Lodge, Hatboro, following his father.  He served as worshipful master in 2007 and as secretary of the lodge.  He was a representative to the Pennsylvania Grand Lodge until 2018.  He also held memberships in good standing with Royal Arch #270, Cryptic Council #51, and the Kennsington-Kadosh Commandary #54 of the Knight Templar.  He was Sovereign Prince of Jerusalem in the Scottish Rite.  Jim considered his greatest achievement to be when the 33rd degree of the Scottish Rite was conferred to him in 2017.

Services are Saturday, September, 28, 2019 at Ivyland Presbyterian Church, 51 Gough Avenue, Ivyland, PA with visitation at 3 pm and a service at 4 pm.  A Wake and Masonic service will be held at WK Bray Lodge, 1 S. Penn Street, Hatboro, PA following the services at church (5:30 PM).

In lieu of flowers, contributions to the Scottish Rite charity of Children’s Dyslexia Center, 33 Marrett, Road, Lexington, MA 02421 or at childrensdyslexiacenters.org.

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