Robert J. Corcoran

Robert J. Corcoran, Sr (87), long-time resident of Milton (and before that Hingham), passed away peacefully on May 4th. He was born in Boston, son of the late John William Corcoran and Mary Magdalene Corcoran.

Beloved husband to the late Edith T. Corcoran of Hingham and Marie Clausen Corcoran of Milton.  He will be missed by sons Robert J. Corcoran Jr. and his wife Tracy of Medford, MA, Gerard J. Corcoran and his wife Deanne of South Portland, ME, and Michael Corcoran and his wife Martha of Scituate, MA, and by his step-son Mark Clausen and his wife Joanna of Norton, MA, and step-daughters Jean (Clausen) Whittaker and husband John of North Reading, and Ann (Clausen) Bremser and husband Dan of Franklin, MA. “Gumpy” will be especially missed by his fifteen grandchildren.  He is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews.

Devoted brother to the late Mary Jane Ryan and her late husband Morgan of Ballston Lake, NY, the late Reverend John Corcoran of East Bridgewater, MA, Margaret O’Brien and her late husband Paul of Scituate, MA, the late Patricia Haughey and her husband Bob of West Hartford, CT, and Katherine Trask and her late husband Richard of Scituate, MA.

Educated at Boston Latin School (’47) and Boston College (’51), Bob went on to proudly serve his country in the United States Navy serving in Washington DC attached to a Naval Intelligence unit.  While serving in the Navy, Bob completed his MBA at Georgetown University.

Bob began his professional career with General Electric but quickly found his passion for work rested in fundraising and joined the late James Lavin at the International Fundraising Institute (IFI) in Boston soon after completing his MBA and returning to Massachusetts.  While working for IFI, Bob helped the American Cancer Society with various projects and campaigns.

In the late 1960’s Bob started his own fundraising company (Robert J. Corcoran Company) which grew to be an iconic Boston fundraising brand assisting such organizations as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Handel and Hayden Society, Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Carroll Center for the Blind, and numerous other institutions of higher learning, cultural groups, and hospitals.  He was a highly sought-after board member and collaborator with numerous institutions across the country.

But Bob’s greatest joy were his children and grandchildren.  Never one to miss a game or recital, Bob spent many a cold afternoon on the fields of Boston College High School or in their gym watching his sons play and later at Northeastern and Boston College doing the same.  Gumpy continued that great tradition with all his grandchildren in every venue all over New England and beyond.

A faithful member of St. Mary’s of the Hills Church in Milton, MA for decades, Bob served on their Finance Council and lived out his life inspired by the Gospel’s teachings and wisdom.  A Knight of the Holy Sepulcher, Bob and step-daughter Jean traveled to the Holy Land on pilgrimage in what turned out to be the trip of a lifetime and the culmination of a life inspired, motivated, and driven by his faith and lived out in the joy of the Gospel.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to gather with Bob’s family on Tuesday 4-8 PM in the McDonald Keohane Funeral Home SOUTH WEYMOUTH at 809 Main Street (Rte 18 opp. So. Shore Hospital).

Relatives and friends will gather in the funeral home at 9 AM on Wednesday. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 AM on Wednesday at Resurrection Parish, 1057 Main Street, Hingham, MA. 

Interment will follow at St. Paul’s Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be made to the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, In memory of Robert J. Corcoran to support pediatric cancer research and patient care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, PO Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284 or via www.dana-farber.org/gift.