F. Dennis Flynn

F. Dennis Flynn

March 03, 1942 - June 04, 2014

F. Dennis Flynn

March 03, 1942 - June 04, 2014

Obituary

F. Dennis Flynn of San Clemente, CA passed away peacefully at his home on Wednesday, June 4, 2014 at 72 years of age. Dennis was born on March 3, 1942 in Santa Barbara, CA to Edward and Mary Flynn. One of four children, Dennis grew up in Santa Barbara, attended Our Lady of Guadalupe Elementary School and graduated from Santa Barbara Catholic High School. He earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Loyola University in Westchester, CA and a PhD in Education from the University of Southern California. At Loyola, Dennis served as president of Alpha Delta Gamma and Crimson Circle. Also while at Loyola, Dennis met his beloved wife, Sharon Rose Curran. Married from 1964 until Sharon’s passing in 2002, they had three children, Shannon, Bridget and Daniel. After college, Dennis began a career in public education as a teacher with the Los Angeles and Inglewood School Districts and, beginning in 1976, served as a high school principal at San Clemente High School and Dana Hills High School, and then district administrator with the Capistrano Unified School District. Dennis retired as deputy superintendent of schools with the Escondido School District. Post-retirement, Dennis acted as a financial planner with GBS Services, and served on the Pastoral Council at Saint Edward the Confessor Catholic Church where he was a long time parishioner. He was also an active member of the San Juan Capistrano Rotary Club.

Described by a nephew as “the toughest, yet sweetest man”, Dennis was a proud Irishman who loved his church, family, friends, and the Dodgers. He fought multiple sclerosis for more than 30 years with good cheer and unyielding determination. Generous and a friend to all, the saying “He never met a stranger” applied to Dennis. His grandchildren thought Dennis was a celebrity because whenever they were out together, people would recognize him and stop to chat. His company and counsel will be greatly missed.

Dennis is predeceased by his wife, Sharon Rose Curran Flynn and brother, Edward Flynn. He is survived by his loving companion, Fredi Emley; sisters Kathleen and Mary; children, Shannon (James) Shaw, Bridget (Darin) McCoy and Daniel (Aarin) Flynn; and grandchildren, Timothy, Joseph, Kassy, Colt, Aidan, Cooper and Addison.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, June 19, at 11:00am, at Saint Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Dana Point, CA.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Dennis’ memory to: National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Pacific South Coast Chapter, 12121 Scripps Summit Drive, #190, San Diego, CA 92131.

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5 responses to F. Dennis Flynn

  1. Dennis was such a lovely man. My friendship with Dennis; which began with Rotary and deepened outside of our Club, was alive with his sharp Irish humor, his investment guidance, his political alliance and his true, loving friendship. He was a man I greeted with a hug and a kiss. I felt it a privilege to assist him as he struggled to get in and out of his car. Mostly, I just simply liked him immensely and felt honored to share in his friendship. Dennis, enjoy the rainbow’s end.

    Táille maith, deartháir. Go dtuga Dia beannú duit le gáire. Go raibh maith agat as an saol maith roinnte tú le gach.

  2. Tammie Hanna says:

    Lit a candle in memory of F. Dennis Flynn

  3. Hello family of Dennis,

    I am Marilyn Lantz, a Teacher’s Aide at Saddleback College, for Adapted Swim. Dennis was in our class for years and he will be sorely missed. He had a great spirit and was always ready to share experiences especially with new students in the class. He has been an inspiration to other students, that despite any disability, you can still be cheerful and keep a good sense of humor.

    My deepest condolences,

    Marilyn Lantz

  4. My Condolences to Dennis’ family and to Fredi. I knew Dennis from Our Lady of Guadalupe School and from S B Catholic High School. We re-connected at the recent reunions. I always thought of him as the original Irishman. RIP.
    M G R

  5. Jim Shaw says:

    From the Memorial Service:

    Hi, for those who don’t know me, I’m Tim Shaw, Dennis Flynn’s oldest grandkid. I was asked to speak today on behalf of all seven of us grandkids.

    One thing I remember about Grandpa is nicknames. Grandpa had a habit of giving us nicknames. We’ve been known as Slim Tim, Joe the Schmoe, Melon Head, Sassy Kassy, and Cooper the (I’ll let you guess that one). Some of my cousins turned the tables on Grandpa and called him “Grandpa Tootsie” because he always had a bowl of Tootsie Rolls waiting for them.

    I want to tell a few short stories about some of my cousins and their Grandpa. Starting with my brother, Joe. On most visits to Grandpa’s house, I would do a few chores and often Grandpa would slip me a few bucks for helping. Joe was supposed to help but he was such a poor worker when he was younger that Grandpa ended up paying him not to help because things got done much quicker.

    Colt recently interviewed his Grandpa for his first grade memory book. Two answers made a big impression on Colt. He found out that his Grandpa was such a big kid that he skipped kindergarten because his teacher thought he was too big for kindergarten. Colt also discovered that his Grandpa was known for having a very large head, just like Colt, a fact that made him very proud.

    Kassy would talk with her Grandpa each day on the way to school so she always started her day with a laugh. She also remembers Grandpa encouraging her love of swimming and listening with close attention to the results of her races.

    Aidan, Cooper and Addie were the luckiest grandkids because they lived nearby and got to see him more than the rest of us. They often would bring their dogs along which made for some interesting moments when three kids and two dogs all had to dodge Grandpa driving his wheelchair!

    The wheelchair fascinated all of us. There are many pictures of us catching a ride, often more than one at a time. Cooper has studied Grandpa’s wheelchair closely enough that he can point out the differences between it and others he sees, much like people talk about the differences between cars.

    Another thing that all the grandkids had a hard time figuring out was why did Grandpa seem to know everyone in town? Whenever we went out with him, people came to visit and chat with him. He knew someone, no matter where we went. When we were young we thought he must be a celebrity! It was always a treat to go out with Grandpa and be surprised by the people you would meet.
    What I’m going to miss most about Grandpa is just sitting around talking with him. He didn’t miss much so we could discuss everything from current events to sports to what was happening with me. He was always interested in what we were doing and would take the time to ask about what was going on with us. More importantly, he really listened to our answers. Grandpa had the gift of making each one of us feel special.

    The main thing that I think all of us will come to appreciate about our Grandpa is that nothing got in his way. He didn’t let Multiple Sclerosis stop him from doing the things he wanted to do, he didn’t let the wheelchair keep him from doing what he wanted and he didn’t even let two walls of his house stop him! Grandpa left us with the gift of knowing you can accomplish a lot, no matter what obstacles life puts in your way. So thank you, Grandpa. I wish we had more time, but we’re forever grateful for the time we had.

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