He was born Oct. 23, 1985 to James and Jamey Finch. He grew up in Molalla and graduated from Molalla High School in 2004.

He loved to spend his time fishing and gardening, and he had a fondness for animals. He always had a smile for everyone he met, and he was genuinely interested in people from all walks of life. As he was a Jehovah’s Witness, his favorite thing was to spread the word of God’s Kingdom Hope of Paradise.

He worked at McDonald’s and Safeway and as a landscaper. Survivors include his parents, James and Jamey Finch of Molalla; sisters, Janelle Finch of Woodburn and Joella Finch of Molalla and brother, Joshua Finch of Molalla.

A celebration of life was held at Clackamas Community College in Oregon City.

Arrangements were handled by Crown Memorial Center-Milwaukie.

Wrong-way crash on I-5 kills Molalla man

By: Bethany Monroe
Published: 9/16/2011 2:22:17 PM

A Molalla man died early Wednesday after crashing his car while driving the wrong direction on the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 near Woodland, Wash.

Jesse A. Finch, 25, was found deceased in his burning 1999 Toyota Camry after driving northbound in the left southbound lane and crashing into a guardrail on the right near milepost 20 around 2:42 a.m. on Sept. 14. The car burst into flames when it crashed, said Trooper Ryan Tanner, a public information officer for the Washington State Patrol.

“He drove approximately six miles in the wrong direction,” Tanner said, noting that a 9-1-1 caller had first reported a wrong-way driver near milepost 14.

No other vehicles were involved in the wreck.

Police are awaiting toxicology reports from the medical examiner's office to determine if Finch had drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of the crash, Tanner said. The investigation remains open.

Police do not know where Finch was headed or where he was coming from at the time of the crash, Tanner said.

Reprinted from the Molalla (Oregon) Pioneer, published: 09/16/2011