James Charles Kirkwood

Jim Kirkwood passed away peacefully after a brief illness on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 2014.

Jim was a Seattle native born in 1926 to John Kirkwood and Marion Prince. He grew up in the Green Lake neighborhood and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1944. Upon graduation, Jim enlisted in the Navy and served aboard the USS Harry Lee until his honorable discharge in 1946.

He returned immediately to Seattle and entered the  University of Washington  pledging Sigma Chi Fraternity. A member of the Seattle Yacht Club, he loved motor boats, boat racing through the Sammamish Slough and around Green Lake, and water skiing in Northwest waters. He was also a master with all things mechanical and kept office hours in his home shop awaiting the arrival of a broken toy. 

In 1949, he married Diann, a Roosevelt classmate, and embarked on a long career in business in Seattle following his UW graduation in 1950. He started as a salesman with William Volker Company and finished as a founder of Westlake Carpet Distributors. Jim and Diann raised their four children in their Laurelhurst home and eventually moved to a house on the lake where Jim spent hours sculpting the beach, minding the ski boat and watching the show outside the windows. 

Jim is survived by his wife of 65 years, Diann; his children Jan Waszak (Steve), Charlie (Linda), Joann Gowan (Patrick), and Keith (Nancy); and by his beloved grandchildren Joe, Elizabeth, Catherine Mulcahy (Richy), Alex, Kimmy, Kyle, Bill, and Laura Miller (Lance) not to mention his life-long friends from Roosevelt, Sigma Chi, and each of the neighborhoods in which he lived during his years here.

A celebration of Jim's life was held from 3:00 to 5:00 on December 27, 2014 at the Seattle Yacht Club. In lieu of flowers, the Kirkwood family appreciates your donation to the Roosevelt Foundation, PO Box 15791, Seattle, Washington or to a charity of your choice.