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Funeral services announced for legendary Boston philanthropist Jack Connors

The Boston philanthropist died on Tuesday at age 82.

Jack Connors in 1998.

By Eva Levin

July 24, 2024

1 minute to read

Funeral services for legendary Boston philanthropist Jack Connors have been announced.

The advertising titan died from pancreatic cancer on Tuesday. He was 82.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola Church, at 28 Commonwealth Avenue
in Chestnut Hill, will hold visiting hours from 3 to 8 p.m. on July 29. The funeral mass will be on July 30 starting at 10 a.m. His funeral will be livestreamed at this link.

Jack Connors dies at 82

During his long life, Connors rarely left Boston. “I am a Boston guy. I am a homeboy,” he told The Boston Globe in 2007. “I live less than two miles from the hospital where I was born. I live less than four miles from the house I was raised in. I live less than 10 miles from the high school I went to. I live four miles from the college I went to. I am a local.”

Connors founded Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos, Inc., a full-service marketing communications company, in 1968. Under his leadership, it became one of the biggest advertising agencies in the country.

Throughout his life, he served on boards and committees for many local organizations. He served on his alma mater Boston College’s Board of Trustees for more 30 years and was chairman of the Board of Directors of Partners HealthCare System (now Mass General Brigham) for 16 years.

He may be most well known for founding Camp Harbor View, a summer camp for children in need across Boston.

Last December, Boston Magazine asked Connors what he thought would make Boston better. His response? “If the rich people cared about the poor people.”

Connors is survived by his wife Eileen, four children, and 13 grandchildren.