Obituary: James F. Tingley

James F. Tingley
James F. Tingley, of Glen Cove, died on Sept. 16, 2009 in his 91st year. Husband of Dorothy. Father of Gail Simon (Jim), Thomas (Renie) and Jill Fuller (Robert). Brother of Catherine McBride of Greenlawn, NJ. Grandfather of Erin and Colleen Simon and Shelby Fuller. Prayer service at the Funeral Home of Dodge-Thomas, Glen Cove. Interment Calverton National Cemetery. Donations may be made to American Cancer Society www.cancer.org.

James F. Tingley was born Oct. 18, 1918 in Jersey City, NJ, and grew up in Westfield, NJ. During WWII he served in the Third Army as a captain transporting supplies and prisoners of war. He arrived at Omaha Beach 30 days after the June 6, 1944 invasion of Normandy and fought in the frigid, six week Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes Forest on the Germany/Belgium border. He truly loved his military service and had a military burial.

He was a distinguished golf enthusiast with numerous titles to his name; he qualified for match play in the 1961 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach - (won by Jack Nicklaus) and the first U.S. Senior Open in 1981. He had 8 U.S. Senior Amateur appearances, where he was medalist six times and a victory in the Travis Memorial along with belonging to many golf associations in New York and national organizations. He has achieved what many dreamed of...20 holes in one. His last hole in one was at the ripe young age of 88. He even played golf this past June.

He was a member of Nassau Country Club in Glen Cove for over 50 years - the oldest member and membership of the club. He also held the Golf Club Championship title five times over the years which is the record for the most club championships titles held by a member.

He was a district sales manager for Metropolitan Life for over 30 years retiring at 62. Dorothy and he celebrated their 60th anniversary with family in June. His kids and grandkids came from California and North Carolina to help them celebrate this occasion.