Connelly Christopher J. Connelly Christopher James Connelly, loving husband, father, son, grandson, brother, and uncle, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, on September 26, 2019 after a long and heroic battle with brain cancer. Christopher was 39 years old. Christopher was born on December 5, 1979 in Frederick, Maryland, one minute after his twin brother, Shawn. He attended Valley Elementary, Brunswick Middle, and Brunswick High School where he developed a fondness for math and history, played football and ran track, and formed lifelong friendships. He studied economics at Towson University (2003) where he was an active member of Phi Sigma Kappa Fraternity, and went on to pursue his MBA at the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business (2012). Christopher worked for the Audit practice at Deloitte, and had an exciting career in business in a variety of industries, from healthcare to professional services. More importantly, he was the kindest, funniest, and most genuine man; an eternal optimist, a child at heart, and a formidable fantasy football team manager. Christopher met his wife Kristen in 2011, and moved to Northern Virginia shortly thereafter. Christopher was so confident when he proposed, he planned a surprise party of all their family and friends to celebrate, just moments after he asked Kristen to marry him. Kristen and Christopher were married five years ago on September 13, 2014. Together they built a beautiful life and partnership full of love and laughter, focused on family and friends, the beach, and good food especially tacos, crab cakes, and icecream. They traveled the world together, with memorable adventures in Italy, Paris, South America,Hawaii, Las Vegas, and Miami but his favorite vacations were family traditions, especially beach weeks in Ocean City, MD and Long Beach Island, NJ. Christopher was famously always the last person on the beach at the end of the day. In November 2016, Christopher and his wife welcomed Jack Christopher, who has inherited his father's beautiful blue eyes and love of cooking. Christopher said that raising Jack was more rewarding than he could have ever imagined, and he loved introducing Jack to the Redskins, UMD Terps, Guns N' Roses, and the Harvard Business Review. Christopher's greatest source of joy came from his family, and he was a thoughtful and attentive husband, father, son, grandson, brother, and uncle. He always put others ahead of himself. He was an inspiration to all that knew him and he will be dearly missed. Survivors include wife Kristen and son Jack of Alexandria, VA; father James Connelly, Jr. and mother Linda Connelly of Jefferson, MD; mother-in-law Angela Stephan and father-in-law Michael O'Neill of Alexandria, VA; grandparents Ruth Connelly of Portage, PA and James and Joanne Cunningham of Greensburg, PA; brother Shawn (and Whitney) Connelly of Ashburn, VA; sister Elizabeth (and Ryan) Defibaugh of Frederick, MD; and four nephews. Friends are invited to greet the family from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, October 2, at Aldersgate United Methodist Church (1301 Collingwood Road, Alexandria) where the service will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, October 3, and a memorial reception to follow at the Belle Haven Country Club (6023 Fort Hunt Road, Alexandria). In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to support the college fund of Jack Christopher Connelly, to help Jack realize his parent's dreams of their son becoming an attorney or a doctor.In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to support the college fund of Jack Christopher Connelly, to help Jack realize his parent's dreams of their son becoming an attorney or a doctor.