Obituary of John Francis Healy

John Francis “Jack” Healy, Jr., age 89, passed away peacefully Tuesday, April 28 at Greenspring Retirement Community in Springfield, VA.  He was the beloved husband of Mary Abigail (Corning), originally of Winchester, Mass, proud father of John, Martin, and Kathleen, father-in-law to Cynthia (Montero), and Grampy Jack to Aiden and MacKenzie.  He is also survived by his sister, Janet Healy Weeks, a nephew and two grand-nephews, all of San Francisco, CA.

Born in in Quincy, Mass, Jack was the son of the late John Francis and Sheila (Jackson) Healy.  A precocious reader, he could be found most summers prowling the library book stacks, or at the beach, where he inexplicably worked one summer as a lifeguard despite a complete lack of swimming skills.  Life in his close knit Irish-American community centered around family, friends, and church, and not necessarily in that order.  He later would proudly note that his DNA test reported that he was 100 percent Irish.

He was the first in his family to graduate from college, earning a “triple eagle” by graduating from Boston College high school, Boston College, and Boston College law school.  One of his most rewarding jobs was right after law school, counseling kids in a juvenile detention center.  He also did a brief stint as a private investigator on the streets of Boston that seemed to live on forever in Healy lore.

Jack proudly served on active duty with the Army, and in the reserves for the Navy and Air Force, retiring as a lieutenant colonel.  In the Army he had a largely successful six bout amateur boxing career, up until the last fight he liked to note.  Military service played an essential role in Jack’s life.  When asked his name at Greenspring Retirement Community he would inevitably respond with “Army, Navy, Air Force” or simply “Hoo-rah.”

He moved to Springfield, Virginia in 1959, working as a lawyer at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for over 30 years.  He held positions at the FCC’s mobile, international, and anti-trust divisions, and played a role in the break-up of AT&T and the birth of the modern telecommunications industry.  Both a son and a daughter followed him into government service.

Jack was a proud and devoted husband, father, and grandfather.  A champion of higher education, he made sure that his children attended the best high schools and colleges (Jesuit, of course).  He took great pride and pleasure in attending all of his children and grandchildren's sporting events and school activities.  He was also a passionate sports fan, holding a Washington Redskins season tickets for decades and suffering for years as a devoted member of Red Sox Nation.  Sundays were for church and football, and for Jack breaking the curse of the Bambino in 2004 was an achievement only surpassed by the moon walk.  He will forever claim that Dom DiMaggio and John Havlicek were the most underrated men in Boston sports.

A small family-only service was held May 7th at Holy Spirit Catholic Church.  He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, likely in fall 2020.   Notice will be put out prior to the service.  

Jack’s greatest accomplishment was being a father, and lived by the motto “always go forward, never look back.”  He will be missed.