John R. O'Brien

John R. O’Brien passed away peacefully at his home on March 26, 2021.  He was 89 years old and a resident of Bergen County for 55 years.He is survived by his wife, Rosemary; his four children, John, James, Karen, and Timothy; and 12 grandchildren, Tara, Jack, Neal, James, Charlie, Emma, Maya, Catherine, Nick, Ali, Jillian, and Leanna. John attended Bloomfield High School and graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.  He received a J.D. degree from Harvard Law School.  He served in the United States Army from 1956-1958.  After ten years in private law practice he joined MacKay Shields Financial Corporation, where he worked for 25 years, eventually becoming Vice Chairman.  After retiring he attended Montclair State University and received a Master’s Degree in American History. John served on the Board of the Christina Seix Academy, a private school for underserved children in Trenton, New Jersey since 2006.  He was an avid tennis player and a member of the Upper Ridgewood Tennis Club.  He enjoyed hiking and climbed to the top of many challenging mountains, near and far.

A Funeral Mass will be held on April 10 at 10:00 AM at St. Elizabeth’s Church, 700 Wyckoff Ave., Wyckoff, New Jersey.  The service will be live streamed for friends and family unable to attend in person.  The website is http://saintelizabeths.org/live-streaming In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in John’s memory to the Paterson Habitat for Humanity, P.O. Box 2585, Paterson, NJ 07509.