Born in the Bronx to Mary and George Blessington, he was the youngest of four children and proud of his Irish and Bronx heritage. Jack and his wife Pat (née Murray) of 65 years were longtime residents of Cos Cob, CT, and active parishioners of St. Catherine of Siena in Greenwich, CT, for over 60 years.
Jack graduated from Fordham Preparatory School before attending St. Mary’s Seminary & University in Baltimore, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts. Years later, he earned a Master of Education from Fairfield University.
Although Jack had careers in both education and television, education was his true passion. His first teaching job was at Saint David’s School in Manhattan. From there, he joined the newly-founded Whitby School in Greenwich, CT, becoming its headmaster in 1962. Whitby School revived Montessori education in the United States, and over the 11 years Jack ran the school, Whitby grew to become the preeminent Montessori school in the country. In recognition of his long-held belief in the value of a Montessori education and his never-ending support of the Montessori Method, Jack was named a lifetime member of the American Montessori Society. He later served as Headmaster of Berkshire School of Sheffield, MA, and The Unquowa School of Fairfield, CT.
Jack’s views on education were unorthodox to say the least and got the attention of Doubleday & Company, which published his book Let My Children Work in 1973. He would joke it was a neighborhood best seller.
Jack also had a 40-year career in television. A believer in television as an educational tool, it was only appropriate that Jack joined CBS in 1979 as its Director, Educational Relations and eventually became Vice President, Broadcast Relations, serving on the network president’s staff. In 1989, Jack became Executive Producer, Religious and Cultural Broadcast, where he produced a series of documentaries for over 30 years. He retired from CBS in 2019.
Jack’s many recognitions and awards for his work in education and television include three honorary doctorates, two Wilbur Awards (for recognition of excellence in the communication of religious issues, values, and themes), and a Daytime Emmy Award for Religious Programming.
Jack was a gifted public speaker, and his views on education and television landed him regular speaking engagements throughout the country, as well as on local and national talk shows.
Devoutly Catholic and deeply spiritual, Jack served on the board of the American Bible Society and was a trustee of The Temple of Understanding. As a former seminarian, he was an avid reader of books on faith and religion and regularly contributed to Catholic publications. Jack wrote with passion and an interfaith perspective of seeing everyone, regardless of religion, as loved by God. As he once said in an interview, “I am a church-attending Roman Catholic who argues for ecumenism.”
On the lighter side, Jack was a big personality with a quick wit, who had a natural ability to connect with people. He was the definition of the man who never met a stranger, and through his work in education and television, touched the lives of many. Jack was also known for his sense of humor and next-level ability at storytelling, drawing regularly on his experiences in education and television, as well as growing up Irish Catholic in the Bronx, the son of a New York City fireman.
He was a longtime member of the University Club, where he could be seen on occasion after work enjoying his usual – a Dewar’s neat, in a wine glass with a lemon peel and water back.
In addition to his loving wife Pat, Jack is survived by his three children: Patricia Heneghan, John Blessington (Anne), and Thomas Blessington (Martha), and eight grandchildren: Shannon Jutras (Phil) and John Heneghan; Chase, Emme, and Jack Blessington; and Madison, Kathryn, and Ben Blessington. Family, faith, and laughter were Jack’s world, and his never-ending curiosity and perspective on life will be missed.
Family and friends are invited to calling hours on Saturday, March 9, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at Leo P. Gallagher & Son Funeral Home, 31 Arch Street, Greenwich, CT. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, March 9, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. at St. Michael the Archangel Church, 469 North Street, Greenwich, CT.
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