James H. Brownlow died on June 16 at his summer home on Martha’s Vineyard. The cause of death was heart failure. He was 85 years old.

A native of Oradell, NJ, Jim attended the Naval Academy in Annapolis, where he earned a letter as the manager of the varsity swim team and graduated with the Naval Academy class of 1955 as a member of the 20th Company.

He served on active duty for four years aboard the Dashiell, the Tausig, and as commissioning deck department head for Observation Island at Cape Canaveral.

Upon leaving the Navy in 1959, Jim began a 35-year career with IBM, first in sales and then in marketing and development. While at IBM he married Allison, his wife of 45 years. Together they raised five children and sailed every summer from their home in Connecticut to Newport, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

After retiring from IBM, Jim earned a master’s degree in psychological counseling from Southern State University and worked for ten years at MidState Hospital in Wallingford, Conn.

Jim was predeceased by his first wife, Barbara. He is survived by his wife, Allison, his children, Jane, Scott and Andrew, and his stepchildren, Daniel and Clifford.

The family plans to celebrate Jim’s life in September at their home on Martha’s Vineyard.