Charlotte, Raleigh communities rally to support family of late swimmer Jack Roney
A funeral is scheduled this weekend in Raleigh to remember the life of Jack Roney, who earlier this month died unexpectedly at 39 years old.
But the Charlotte and Raleigh communities have already come together to rally support for the Roney family.
As of Thursday afternoon, a GoFundMe titled “Support Maresa Roney & Family” had achieved $214,000 raised. Jack is survived by his wife, Maresa, and five children: Gunnar, Scout, Beau, Archer and Crew.
Jack Roney was an N.C. State swimmer in the late 2000s and later became an assistant coach for the Wolfpack. He was born in Florida but moved to Charlotte as a child before attending the university in Raleigh and spending the rest of his life there. He died unexpectedly at 39 years old on July 5; an official cause of his death was not disclosed in his obituary.
A funeral is set for 11 a.m. Saturday at Hope Community Church off Buck Jones Road in Raleigh, with a wake and visitation at Bryan Lee Funeral Home from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, according to a post from the GoFundMe organizer.
In comments and in donations — the top donation being an anonymous $10,000-pledge — support has been unrelenting.
“It is so hard to imagine a world without Jack,” a joint post on the site read from Braden Holloway and his wife, Mary. Braden Holloway is the head coach of N.C. State’s swimming and diving program. “He was a loving husband and father, and a true friend to so many.
“Maresa, our entire Wolfpack family is grieving this unimaginable loss with you. Please know that we are here, forever and always, for you and your family.”
While much of Roney’s life was in Raleigh, word of his passing impacted people across North Carolina, including in Charlotte. Roney was a standout swimmer for his neighborhood pool, Mountainbrook Swim Club, before competing on a year-round schedule for New South Swimming and Myers Park High School.
His parents, John and Anne, still reside in Charlotte, according to his obituary. He “held numerous North Carolina age-group state records,” per his obit, and was a key part of the growing swimming power that Myers Park High School grew into.
More important, however, Roney was always a lovely teammate and presence, his high school head coach Mimi Goudes said.
“His smile always reached his eyes when he was doing something he loved,” Goudes told The Charlotte Observer earlier this week. Goudes coached at Myers Park in two different stints — once from 1996 to 2004 and then once again from 2012 to 2023, she said.
Goude kept up with Roney’s life via Facebook after he left. But she still pictures the 15-year-old freshman and 18-year-old senior when she thinks of him, she said.
“He would come to my room on occasion and just, kind of, be,” said Goudes, who also taught at Myers Park High. “It’s one of those things where he was just fun to be around. ...
“He was meant for a pool deck. And being part of a team. Cheering people on. And lifting them up to be the best that they could be.”
