Thomas Patrick Meehan

1940 - 2024

Thomas Patrick Meehan, a highly successful Washington, DC, attorney who founded an award-winning investment firm and mutual fund, died October 3, 2024, at his home in Bethesda, MD, surrounded by his family. He was 84.
Born on August 15, 1940, in Teaneck, NJ, Tom was the sixth of Francis and Alice Meehan's 12 children. He spent his childhood on the Hudson River in Edgewater, NJ, in the shadow of Palisades Amusement Park.
Tom's parents always emphasized the importance of education. When his athletic talent, academic aptitude – and a bit of luck - earned him a scholarship to Horace Mann School in New York City he accepted without hesitation. Tom always described the opportunity to attend Horace Mann as life- changing. He played football and ran track until a freak football injury put an end to his athletic career. Despite his injury, Horace Mann continued to nurture his intellect and helped get him a scholarship to Middlebury College in Vermont.
At Middlebury Tom was class president his junior and senior years and inducted into the Waubankee Men's Honor Society. Tom also developed a life-long friendship with his roommate Ron Brown, who later became chairman of the Democratic National Committee and served as President Clinton's Secretary of Commerce. He was instrumental in the effort to make Brown the first African-American member of his fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon, a decision that cost the Middlebury chapter its charter due to the national fraternity's white-only clause.
He met the love of his life and partner, Marren Ward, at a Kennedy for President campaign event at the Middlebury student union in 1960. They began dating immediately and were married shortly after graduation on August 25, 1962, at the home of Marren's parents in Chevy Chase. They were married for 62 years.
The year they married, Tom won a scholarship to attend Duke Law School. There he thrived, serving on the editorial board of the Duke Law Journal and receiving several academic honors, including induction into the Order of the Coif. After graduating in 1965, Tom and Marren moved to Maryland and Tom spent a year as a Ford Foundation E. Barrett Prettyman Fellow at Georgetown University Law Center, representing indigent defendants in Washington, DC.
In 1968, after a brief stint at a local Washington law firm, Tom co-founded Sherman, Meehan, and Curtin where he practiced for the remainder of his law career. He served as president of the firm for many years, led the firm's civil litigation practice and, foreshadowing the future, managed his firm's retirement plan.
While Tom established his law firm and law career, he and Marren settled in Bethesda's Edgemoor neighborhood, where they raised their family and lived in the same house for 54 years. They were heavily involved in their community and Tom served as President of the Edgemoor Club in 1976. As a lawyer, Tom focused on civil trial practice and handled cases in many areas of the law including personal injury, anti-trust and, later in his career, aviation. Although numerous members of his large family were attorneys, Tom was often the go-to guy for sound advice on legal matters. Family members also relied on him for help in making financial decisions.
Tom loved the competition of trial practice but, after more than 30 years he was ready to try something new. So, after retiring from the law in 1999, Tom founded Edgemoor Investment Advisors and embarked on a second very successful career. Starting from scratch, Tom built a firm that today manages over $1.4 billion. One of the proudest moments of his investment career came just this year when the mutual fund he started and managed until his passing, the Meehan Focus Fund, won the prestigious Lipper award as the best fund in its category over 5 years.
Tom had busy and demanding careers, but his family was always his first priority, and nothing brought him more joy than the successes of his children and grandchildren. He would do anything to support their endeavors, especially when it came to sports, serving as driver, fan, and coach. He was a fixture at tennis matches, martial arts competitions, basketball games, and track and cross country meets. Family vacations included many visits to Martha's Vineyard, as well as cross country adventures to see national parks like Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, and Yosemite, and a trip to Alaska to celebrate Tom and Marren's 50th wedding anniversary. Ever the coach, Tom loved to draw up training plans for his children to follow on vacation.
Tom lived a full life. He and Marren shared a love for travel, exploring destinations such as Australia, China, Ireland, Italy, France, and Nova Scotia. They also made annual trips to Vermont over the years for college reunions and for the Cowshit Festival, a gathering of their many lasting friends from Middlebury. While his football injury as a teen kept him on crutches through much of college, he worked hard to regain his fitness and was very active as an adult running, skiing, and playing tennis, paddle tennis, and golf.
Tom was also an avid poker player and enjoyed having as partners prominent journalists from the Washington Post and Baltimore Sun. He proudly claimed he learned the game from his mother, whom he described as one of the toughest players he ever faced. He played regularly for many years and relished teaching the game to his children and grandchildren.
Tom was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, and mentor to many in law, investing, and life. His wisdom and kindness impacted so many and his absence will be deeply felt by those who knew him. He is survived by his wife Marren; children Paul (Ginny Phillips), Tom, and Shelagh; and grandchildren Susan Forootan, Conor Smyth, Aidan Smyth, Tate Smyth, and Callie Meehan.
A celebration of life will be held on November 10, 2024 at 11 a.m. to be followed by a reception. Please contact the host at shelagh.meehan@gmail.com for details.
In lieu of flowers, contributions to Bethesda Cares (bethesdacares.org) would be appreciated.