John Corcoran ’84, cyclist killed in accident, remembered for his devotion to family | News

Kermond added that Corcoran had a particular fondness for Shakespeare and was known to deliver a monologue from time to time.

Friends described Corcoran as a “Harvard guy” through and through. His father, Paul R. Corcoran, Jr. ’54, was a college graduate, and his son and daughter are current students.

Weldon said Corcoran would speak about Harvard with a “tongue in cheek” while reflecting on his family’s successes at the college and the opportunities it offered them in return.

“But you were a little amazed at how lucky he thought his family was to be part of this community and the opportunities it had given them in life,” Weldon said.

After graduating from Harvard, Corcoran earned a law degree from Boston University and then worked at a Los Angeles law firm for eight years.

While in California, Jack Corcoran said his father went through something of a “dark age” when he realized that law was not his passion. He returned to the classroom and studied business administration at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

In a video store in Philadelphia, he noticed a young veterinary student named Barbara Bower. As they walked out, John Corcoran asked her what movie she had bought.

The two ended up being married for almost 25 years.

“The rest is history,” said Jack Corcoran.

A family man

Despite a busy career as a successful financial analyst, John Corcoran made sure to prioritize what was most important to him: his family.

He took his children on long walks, made time for family movies, and never missed any of his son’s martial arts classes.

“I think he would always say his favorite years were the time he spent with me and Christi and raising us and my family, especially my mother,” Jack Corcoran said.

Weldon said John Corcoran’s commitment to family deepened when he suffered from cardiac arrhythmias and had to undergo surgery during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“If you’re having health issues in midlife, this can really help you think about what’s important in life,” Weldon said. “I saw that in him – and given the tragic way his life ended, I’m grateful that he had those health issues that led him to a more purposeful way of being a father, a husband and just a human being to be general.”

John Corcoran’s renewed outlook on life became even stronger after his own father died two years later, Jack Corcoran said.

“It just made him appreciate everything a lot more,” Jack Corcoran said.

When Jack Corcoran needed his own surgery a few years ago, his father took time off work to stay with him all day – the memory has stuck with him in recent weeks.

“I kept coming out of consciousness and he was holding my hand,” Jack Corcoran said. “It was just a beautiful, sensitive moment.”

He added that his father finds joy in everyday moments.

For Father’s Day one year, Jack Corcoran bought his father a card that, when opened, heard a chorus of dogs barking hallelujah. For the rest of the day, even after everyone had left, his father kept opening the card to hear the song, laughing every time.

“He could just find joy in really small, fun things,” Jack Corcoran said. “That was a connecting point for us.”