Thomas James McAuliffe

Thomas James McAuliffe, 68, died unexpectedly but peacefully at home on August 4, 2022 in Watertown, MA. He was born on September 29, 1953 in Syracuse, New York, the son of John “Jack” Emmett and Millie (Lonergan) McAuliffe.

In 1971, Tom graduated from Corcoran High School, briefly attended his father’s college, Notre Dame, and graduated from University of Dayton in 1975. He worked for the Stephen L. French Forestry Homeward Bound Program aiding troubled youths in Boston before graduating from New England Law School in 1984 and passing the Massachusetts Bar. He then distinguished himself as a sought-after human resources and employment law specialist for more than 35 years.  Tom was known for bringing his sense of humor to the work place and many of his past coworkers became his life-long friends.

He married his high school sweetheart, Patty Anderson, and they had three beautiful daughters, Christine, Kerry, and Annie.  Tom was known for always showing up, which he proved time and time again by never missing one of his daughters’ sports games. Tom was his happiest when vacationing with his family, especially in Cape Cod, Hawaii and Aruba where he loved trying new restaurants, golfing, watching sunsets and battling his daughters on the tennis courts. It was the only time that his family recalls his BlackBerry being detached from his hand. Tom also cherished spending time with his Boston “family,” the Barcelos: Scott, Nancy, Sam and Emmy. Together they shared countless memories of celebrating holidays, attending numerous plays and summer vacationing in Maine where they played hours of cribbage. Nothing was more important to Tom than his family and his greatest accomplishment was his three daughters.

Tom was one of four boys and to no surprise, his brothers were his best friends. Tom always looked forward to their tradition of attending the Big East tournament, running his first Boston Marathon with John and Terry, and going to Busch Gardens at Christmas time with Joe and his Tampa family. He was a student of politics and he and his brothers volunteered for Terry’s gubernatorial campaigns in Virginia where he was beloved by the entire staff. Beloved is a word that constantly pops up among family, friends and associates when describing Tom. 

Ever the outdoorsmen, Tom loved running and completed several New York and Boston marathons. Tom even ran around the town of Belmont with his dog, Petie, who was his favorite and only “son.” He had a passion for biking, kayaking along the Charles River, walking Mount Auburn Cemetery, as well as hiking through the Adirondack’s and Machu Picchu with his Byrne family cousins and in the Rocky Mountain National Park with his nephew Scott.

He was immensely popular due to his winsome personality, engaging sense of humor and cheerful smile. He was an excellent raconteur who delighted friends with his tales from Syracuse. Most notably, people loved Tom because of his genuine concern for their wellbeing. He always asked and really cared about how you were doing and was not remiss to lend you an ear or to open his wallet to help others.

Tom is leaving a trail of brokenhearted survivors including his former spouse Patty, his beloved Christine, Kerry, and Annie, his brothers John (Colleen), Joseph (Kay), and Terry (Dorothy), and a host of adoring nephews and nieces who referred to him as Uncle Cook.

There will be a “Celebration of Life” service for Tom on Sunday, August 14 from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the Boston Harbor Hotel: 70 Rowes Wharf, Boston, MA 02110

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations to be made in honor of Tom to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: https://www.stjude.org

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