DR. JOHN PAUL DHA COMERFORD

1948 - 2025

COMERFORD, Dr. John Paul DHA Passed away, October 17, 2025, in Seattle, WA. John was born in Boston, on November 16, 1948, to the late Paul J. and Mary (McLaughlin) Comerford. John continues his onward, and hopefully upward, journey home without regret. His joyful and full life was marked by a love for God, his family, travel, mentorship, education, politics, and, of course, Boston and Seattle sports teams. Growing up in Neponset section of Dorchester. John attended Boston College High School and the Gate of Heaven, graduating from the University of Massachusetts Boston in 1970, where he helped found and later chaired the Alumni Association during the merger with Boston State College. John earned a doctoral degree and five master's degrees, including degrees from Harvard, serving on an alumni governance board, the University of Cambridge - UK, where he was elected to the University General Board and the Faculty Board, and the University of London - UK, serving as an international alumni ambassador and mentor. After Army and Air Force service, John began his career in Boston government and later joined the Administration of President Jimmy Carter, serving as the Confidential Assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Associate Director of the White House Conference on Economic Development and, at the age of 29, was appointed by President Carter as the founding President of the National Consumer Cooperative Bank. John twice won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Congress and started and served as CEO of two commercial banks, including The Bank of Massachusetts. Later in his career, John served in executive positions in the investment and insurance industries, finishing his career consulting on financial, health and human resource issues, primarily with the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense and the University of Washington. John was honored to receive several Presidential and Gubernatorial appointments to state and national boards for retirement, health care and economic development, and was active in many community, religious and political organizations, including co-founding the Queen Anne Foodbank in Seattle. John is survived by his loving wife, Sheila Preston Comerford; his daughter, Kayla Preston (Bud Dieken), Seattle; cousin, Jay McLaughlin, Esq. (Weezie), Yardley, PA. He was preceded in death by his first cousins, James McLaughlin (Anne, Cambridge, MA and Rome, Italy) and the late Kathleen McLaughlin of New York City. John is also survived by his many nieces, nephews and godchildren; including Adrienne Velema (James), Benedict McLaughlin (Gabriella), Elaine Seggerman (Matt) and Dr. Kerry Meagher, MD, Dan Meagher, Esq., Noel Smith and Emmaline Velema. Private Burial will be held at St. Joseph's Cemetery, West Roxbury, MA. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in John's memory to University of Massachusetts, Boston.

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