John Carroll Leary

John was born to Mary Ann (Mahoney) and George Carroll Leary in Newton, MA on August 12, 1945. He was predeceased by both of his parents, his sister Marilyn Zander, many beloved aunts and uncles, his eldest son John Peter Leary, and two black labradors named Ozzie and Pete. He is survived by his beloved wife MaryLou (Muskalski) Leary of Harwich Port, MA, his daughter Dr. Megan Carroll Leary and her fiancé, Charles L. Wilson Jr. of Coopersburg, PA, his son Brendan Joseph Leary and his wife, Cecily Ann (Eschmann) Leary of Warren, NJ. “Umpa” also leaves his loving grandchildren Theo, Shaun, Sock, Jack, and Sienna, his dog Gus, Brendan Mackay and family, and Karen Satterfield. John will be missed by his in-laws, Joanne Guild, Paul Guild, and Vernon Zander, as well as his aunt Jeannine Mahoney, many cousins, and his neighbors in Harwich Port.

John was known to say that more than anything else, his family was the greatest gift that God could have given him, and more than anything, it molded him into the person he became. He grew up in Newtonville, Massachusetts on 27 Wildwood Avenue, which was a dead-end street consisting of 26 family homes, 24 of which were Irish Catholic, including his own. When John was born in 1945, his home consisted of his grandparents Jeremiah and Ann (Mackey) Mahoney, his parents, and his sister Mal and himself. It was a small Victorian home with three small bedrooms and one bathroom (with a tub but no shower). The entrance into the home’s foyer was via a three-season porch, and in the midst of that foyer sat the one telephone for the household. John would note that when he was dating his future wife MaryLou, she always had him say “I love you” before he could hang up…. And whispering was not allowed.

Summers during John’s childhood were spent in a tiny cottage in Ocean Bluff, Marshfield, Massachusetts. The cottage had belonged to his grandparents, Jerry and Annie Mahoney, who purchased it shortly after John’s parents had honeymooned there. There were three beaches very close by for fishing, suntanning, and swimming, as well as the prerequisite ice cream shop. Later, as an adult, John would bring his own family down to those same beaches as well as beaches on Cape Cod to pass those same memories on to his own children. John followed in his father’s footsteps by trying to cultivate a high reverence for family, God, baseball, and ice cream.

John and his sister Mal agreed that their happiest childhood moments were sharing Christmas with their family. His foremost memory was of his mother placing wrapped gifts under a long buffet table in their dining room, and what began as a gift or two would grow and grow until Christmas Eve. When his sister would gleefully note sometimes that she had more presents than he, John would covertly ‘relabel’ a few to even the score (of course, keeping track of those and switching them back at the final hour). Christmas Eves and Christmas days were spent joyfully celebrating with family, church, presents and food.

John attended Horace Mann Elementary School, followed by F.A. Day Junior High. His future wife MaryLou attended different lower schools, although they shared the same pediatrician, Dr. Blair… and John liked to say that MaryLou ‘must have peeked’. He officially met his future wife for the first time in high school. John graduated from Newton North High, where he successfully played varsity baseball. He also tried, but failed, to copy his future wife’s homework assignments. From 1963 until 1967, John then attended Boston College, where he majored in mathematics and finally asked MaryLou out on a date for ice cream, followed by going to homecoming together. After graduation, he moved to Washington, DC to work as an analyst for the National Security Agency, returning briefly to Newton, MA to marry MaryLou on May 18, 1968. While working for the NSA, John also attended George Washington University and earned his master’s degree in computer science in 1972.

In 1974, the Learys returned to Massachusetts, purchasing a home together on Billings Way in Framingham, where they raised their three kids. John re-engineered his work life, obtaining his first sales job at Data General Corporation, further launching his career at Atria Software, culminating in his final position as Vice President of Sales in the JMP Business Unit at SAS Institute from 2004-2011. Many who had the opportunity to work alongside him would recall his wicked intelligence and sense of sarcasm. For better or worse, all co-workers were always left with an impression in some manner. As the late Bishop Wright similarly had said of Cardinal Cushing, John could exhibit “the magic and the mystery, the love and anger, the open heart and the closed mind, the embrace of words and the flight of reason of those blessed and cursed with the blood of the Irish”.

Those who truly knew John will remember his great capacity for love and humor, his passion for a great steak, chocolate midnight cake, Boston sports, walking with his dog(s), and his worldwide travels prior to retiring in his dream home on Quason Lane in Harwich Port. He remained adamant in his belief that human beings had a second stomach with room at any time for hot fudge sundaes. He was a man of honor and honesty, with a wicked sense of humor, vanity for his good looks, and an exceptional love and reverence for his family, his religious beliefs, and any form of ice cream.

John loved the final words of the Apostles Creed, which he felt was the one prayer that best summarized the teachings of the Catholic Church and reads, “I believe in the communion of saints”. John was always buoyed by the thought that someday he would join his son and other loved ones with the saints in heaven. God help those saints right now... Christmas Eve in heaven will forever be changed.

John’s wake will be held on Monday, January 5th 2026, from 9:30-11:30AM at Doane Beal and Ames Funeral Home, 260 Main Street, West Harwich, MA. Immediately following the wake, a funeral mass will be held at 12:00 noon next door at Holy Trinity Church, 246 Main Street, West Harwich, MA. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, www.stjude.org.