William M. Cloherty

William “Bill” M. Cloherty who was long active in state and national Democratic politics, died on December  29, 2016 at his Bethesda, MD home surrounded by family and friends. Reared in Medford and Hull, MA Bill was a graduate of Harvard College in the class of 1962.  A man of strong Catholic faith, Bill often transformed lives. He derived his greatest joy from serving the poor in Washington D.C. and the Third World. Bill was an ambassador to the world starting with his time at People-to-People after graduation, then administering the Latin American Teaching Fellowship Program for the Fletcher School at Tufts, and later obtaining funding the Jean Meyer Center for Nutrition at Tufts, the Monterey Institute of International Studies at a critical junction, Boston University, the founding of the American Studies Center at Fudan University in Shanghai, and for the Harvard College Fund. Bill was always an entrepreneur, largely for public causes, but involved in groundbreaking efforts in the energy field, starting with a planned major East Coast LNG installation.   In his last days, he received calls and letters expressing love and gratitude from individuals and families in whose lives he had played a crucial role — from Beijing, Lafayette Indiana, New York, his native Massachusetts, London, and other points around the globe.

Beloved husband of Margaret (Bland) Cloherty for 37 years, Bill was dearest, elder brother to 4 brothers James, Dennis, John and Brian and two sisters Diane and Mary Ann.  He is also survived by numerous in-laws, nieces, nephews and godchildren.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the visiting hours on  Friday January 6, from  4-8 pm at Pyne-Keohane Funeral Home 21 Emerald St., Hingham, MA.

Funeral Mass  will be celebrated on Saturday January 7,  at 10 am in  St Ann’s Catholic Church, 208 Samoset Avenue, Hull, MA. Burial at Hull Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to organizations where Bill served for decades:  asimplehouse.org  or accion.org. See www.Keohane.com for directions and online condolences.