BOXFORD - James R. Locke, 51 of Boxford, beloved husband of Leslie (Merritt) Locke, with whom he shared almost 25 years of marriage, passed away peacefully on Sunday, August 15th at Brigham and Women's Hospital, after a two-year battle with cancer.

Born in Salem, Jim was the son of John A. and Marjorie J. (Williams) Locke. He was raised and educated in Salem and attended North Shore Vocational School. An outstanding athlete, as a young man he excelled on the Soccer field having been selected to the U.S. Men's Development team, competing in tournaments throughout Europe. He graduated from Salem State College where he played on the Men's Basketball and Soccer teams and later earned his M.B.A. degree from Suffolk University.

Jim worked as the Chief Financial Officer at Bit Flow in Woburn for the past twenty-one years. Bit Flow was like family to Jim and they offered unwavering support during his illness.

Jim was a very warm and generous man, both with his time and affections. He was a devoted husband, father, son and friend. Jim was very involved in the Boxford community as well as the youth sports community. He served on the board of the Boxford Athletic Association for many years while coaching his son, Evan and daughter, Alex in soccer, basketball, softball and baseball. Along with being their coach, he was Evan's and Alex's biggest cheerleader. His kids were his pride and joy. Jim also coached girls AAU basketball for many years prior to coaching his own kids. Jim was the Commissioner of the Boxford Men's Softball League for the past seven years where he made countless friends and loved the sense of community. The softball guys were a tremendous source of support for Jim and his family during his illness. Jim also served on the Andrews Farm Home Association.

Jim had many hobbies and interests. He owned a boat for many years and loved to take family and friends out for rides. He loved to take trips to Disney with Leslie and the kids.  In recent years, Jim, Evan and Alex ran a 10K road race at Disney. Jim loved to cook delicious holiday meals for the extended family. He played golf and played men's basketball for many years. Jim and Leslie have been season ticket holders to the Patriots long before Tom Brady was a household name. He was very generous sharing tickets with his family and friends. Jim could often be seen behind home plate at Red Sox games including the 2013 World Series Championship game. He was the proud owner of Bengal Cats; Nala, Tundra and Goose.

Jim is survived by his wife and best friend, Leslie A. (Merritt) Locke, his son, Evan J. Locke and daughter, Alex L. Locke all of Boxford, his parents, John A. and Marjorie J. Locke of Salem, his brother, John A. Locke Jr. and his wife, Sheri of Barnstead, New Hampshire, father-in-law and mother-in-law, George E. and Joyce Merritt, of Danvers, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Bill and Maureen Merritt, of Danvers and Chris and Rene Merritt, of Beverly, His nieces and nephews, Shayla Locke, Jenica Holzschuh (husband, Tyler Holzschuh and son, Sam), Patrick, Cody and Brendan Merritt, Ceirra, Olivia and Jackson Merritt and extended family. He also leaves behind many friends and extended family members.

Jim's family is tremendously grateful for the compassionate care Jim received at Dana Farber Hospital as well as Brigham and Women's Hospital.

ARRANGEMENTS: His funeral service will be held graveside at Village Cemetery, Georgetown Rd., Boxford, Saturday, August 21 ^st at 11 A.M. Relatives and friends invited. Visiting hours at Peterson-O'Donnell Funeral Home, 167 Maple St., (rte 62) Danvers, Friday, August 20 ^th from 4 to 8 P.M. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made in James's memory to Dana Farber Cancer Center, 10 Brookline Pl, W 6 ^th Floor, Brookline, MA 02445. To share a memory or offer a condolence, please visit www.odonnellfuneralservice.com

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
P.O. Box 849163, Boston MA 02284
Tel: 1-800-525-4669
Web: http://www.dana-farber.org/gift