May 21 funeral for business legend Flatley
By Robert Aicardi
Mon May 19, 2008, 05:26 PM EDT


Braintree - Thomas J. Flatley, 76, a Braintree-based businessman who became a legend for coming to the United States in 1950 with $32 in his pocket and building a real estate empire that made him a billionaire, died on May 17 at his Milton home after a year-long battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated on May 21 at 10:30 a.m. in St. Agatha Church in Milton, with interment to follow in Milton Cemetery.

“Mr. Flatley was a role model for success in his business and charitable endeavors and also in the way he conducted himself as a gentleman,” state Rep. Joseph Driscoll (D-Braintree) told the Forum. “His leadership on the South Shore and in the state will be missed.”

An Irish immigrant and devout Catholic, Flatley became one of the wealthiest businessmen in the nation, specializing in developing commercial properties, many of them south of Boston.

His Flatley Company built everything from hotels (among them, the Sheraton Tara in Braintree and the Quincy Marriott) to industrial parks to office complexes to shopping centers.

Flatley quietly gave away millions to charities and local programs, earning a nickname from Forbes magazine as “the anti-Donald Trump” because in contrast to the star of “The Apprentice,” he cherished his privacy and shunned the limelight.

“A lot of people never knew what he was doing to help others,” said the Rev. William Leahy, the president of Boston College, of which Flatley was a trustee.

There were occasions, however, when his actions became public.

For example, because of Flatley, the Archdiocese of Boston will move its administrative headquarters sometime this summer from Brighton to a four-story, 140,000 square foot brick building at 66 Brooks Drive.

Assessed at about $14 million, Flatley sold the building to the Archdiocese for less than $100, according to published reports.

“We are grateful to Tom for working with the Archdiocese in identifying a new home for our new pastoral center,” Cardinal Sean O’Malley said last year when he announced Flatley’s decision to sell the building “Tom has lifted the spirits of scores of people for many years through his philanthropic work, and he has made many important contributions both in talent and in resources to our local church. He cares deeply about the future of our Catholic community, and we pray that his commitment to the church inspires others to help us in this important moment of rebuilding.”

Flatley was a U. S. Army veteran of Korea.
He leaves his wife, Charlotte E. (McLeod) Flatley; his children, Daniel T. Flatley and his wife Maureen, Mary Margaret Darling and her husband Ralph, John J. Flatley and his wife Kate; Patricia A. Flatley, and Kathleen F. Ix and her husband Robert; a brother, Ambrose N. Flatley and his wife Mary; a sister, Mary M. Driscoll; and 18 grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to My Brother’s Keeper, P. O. Box 338, Easton, MA 02356 or Teen Challenge, 1315 Main St., Brockton, MA 02301, or Fr. Bill’s and Mainspring, 38 Broad St., Quincy, MA 02169.

Material from a Patriot Ledger article by Lane Lambert was used in this story.
http://www.wickedlocal.com/braintree...legend-Flatley