James Doherty

CHESHIRE - James "Sparky" Doherty, 95, passed away Monday September 16, 2013 at his home. He was the husband of Fran (Steffens) Doherty.

Jim was born November 14, 1917 in Waterbury, the son of the late Thomas and Gertrude Dougherty. He was raised in Waterbury and graduated from Washington College where he met his wife of 64 years. He proudly served his country during WWII as well as the Korean War in the United States Navy and was a teacher at Crosby High School for over 33 years.

He was a Cheshire Fire Department member since 1954 serving multiple positions with the department. During his years in the department he received many commendations and awards including the Firefighter of the Year and the William Grove Award. He was a Past President of the CT Fire Marshals Association.

In 1978, Jim became the town's first paid Fire Marshal, a job he kept until retiring in 1997. The longest-serving Marshal in the town's history, he was known to be a stickler for rules and the fire code. He was passionate about fire prevention. For several decades, he went to schools dressed as Sparky the fire dog. His family adopted four Dalmatian dogs, two of them named Sparky, who accompanied Doherty in the Memorial Day parades. In 2011 Jim was inducted into the Connecticut State Firefighter Association Hall of Fame.

Besides his wife, Jim is survived by his sons James Jr. and his wife Carol of NJ, Paul and his wife Kathy of Cheshire, Jeff and his wife Cindy of VA, and Brian and his wife Mitzie of Southington; a brother Thomas F. Dougherty and his wife Lorraine of Morris; as well as his two granddaughters Heather and Bretta.

Arrangements - Funeral services will be held on Friday 10:15 from the Alderson Funeral Home of Cheshire, 615 S. Main St. to St. Bridget Church for Mass at 11 a.m. Burial will follow in St. Bridget Cemetery. Calling hours will be held on Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to the Cheshire Fire Department, 250 Maple Ave., Cheshire, CT 06410.