Retired Army Colonel John R. “Jack” McNealy of Rindge, New Hampshire formerly of Boston, Vienna, VA and Mahone Bay, NS passed away peacefully on April 29, 2024. He was 85 years old.

He leaves behind his wife of 62 years Kathaleen (Galland) McNealy; a son retired Army Colonel John Michael and his wife Jennifer McNealy of Falls Church, Virginia; a granddaughter Brigid Merina McNealy; a daughter Michelle "Mimi” McNealy Langenderfer, Ph.D and her husband Retired Air Force Colonel Mark “Doc” Langenderfer. Jack is also survived by his sister Joan (McNealy) White of West Roxbury.

He was the son of John E. McNealy and Mary A. White and the grandson of both a Boston Fire Department Captain and a Boston Police Department Sergeant. He was preceded in death by a brother Paul F. McNealy and sister Anne Marie McNealy Lyons. He also is one of thirteen first cousins and proud uncle to eleven nephews and nieces.

Jack was a true Bostonian and always reminded people that he was actually born in “Downtown Boston”. He grew up in Mattapan and Revere and attended Boston College High School. A 1960 graduate of Boston College, he was a member of the Dramatic Society and a writer for the Heights, the BC School newspaper. Active in debating for four years he was awarded the Fulton Gold Medal for Debating and later named to the Fulton Debating Hall of Fame.

Jack was a super fan of Boston College Hockey and Football teams and an avid rooter of Boston’s professional sports teams. He always claimed to have attended the very first Patriots’ game ever played and also the Celtics’ first NBA Championship win (along with his parents and brother).

Commissioned as an Army Second Lieutenant upon graduation, he earned a Master’s Degree from Indiana University before embarking on a twenty-two year career as a Military Intelligence Officer. A two-time Vietnam veteran, he also served at West Point, The Presidio of Monterey (CA), the American Embassy in Paris, the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Pentagon. He later spent 16 years as a Senior Financial Adviser with Merrill Lynch.

In addition to travelling to over sixty countries and 48 of the 50 States, he was able to coach youth sports in Virginia for many years. Then in his later years he became an active genealogist, compiling a family history of over 1100 names. Jack was a member of Paris Post 1 of the American Legion and of the Eire Society of Boston.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Loyola Chapel, Boston College High School, 150 Morrissey Blvd, Dorchester, Saturday May 4, 2024 at 10:00AM. Family and friends invited. Visiting hours at Dolan Funeral Home, 460 Granite Avenue, EAST MILTON SQUARE Friday, May 3 from 4-8PM. Interment New Calvary Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Jack’s memory may be made to his favorite charity, Mustard Seed Communities, 29 Jaynes Ave, Medfield, MA 02052, www.mustardseed.com, which cares for society’s most vulnerable in Jamaica and four other countries, would be appreciated.