BRAINTREE -- Jack Connors Jr., the Boston advertising mogul, legendary philanthropist, and founder of the Campaign for Catholic Schools, died in his Brookline home on July 23 at the age of 82. The news of his death sparked an outpouring of tributes from the Catholic institutions that he spent so much of his life serving.

"This morning, we lost an extraordinary leader and beloved friend," the Campaign for Catholic Schools said in a statement sent to donors.

The statement recalled that one of Connors's favorite Bible passages was the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

"From our perspective, he embodied the life lessons of that parable," the statement read. "A champion of empowering others, Jack always paused along life's journey, not only to offer his own helping hand but also to galvanize others to join his efforts. No one has done more for Boston and its communities than her native son, Jack Connors."

A native of Roslindale, Connors had great financial success in the advertising industry, from which he gave generously to both Catholic and secular institutions. After founding the Campaign for Catholic Schools in 2007, he and Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley joined forces to raise $130 million for the transformation of 10 struggling Catholic schools in Brockton and Dorchester into the modern Trinity Catholic Academy and Pope St. John Paul II Catholic Academy campuses.

In his statement, Cardinal O'Malley offered his prayers to Connors's family and praised "his vision of what a good society should be, and his seemingly endless generosity to others."

The cardinal expressed his gratitude for Connors's assistance when he first became Archbishop of Boston. He called Connors's help "a gift which has been of enormous value to the church and to me personally over the past 20 years."

"Jack combined a life of civic leadership and Christian generosity," he said. "The generosity was never confined to one area of need or suffering; it was boundless in its content."

"Jack's faith and Jesuit education grounded his conviction to honor the human dignity of every person of every faith and every ethnic or racial community which make up the mosaic of the United States," the cardinal said. "His position and role in Boston offered him the opportunity to enhance human dignity, to foster human equality, and to provide a model for others who joined him in so many endeavors across several decades."

In November 2023, Connors and Cardinal O'Malley were honored at the Campaign for Catholic Schools 15th Anniversary Dinner in Boston. In his remarks at the dinner, Connors said that in the aftermath of the sexual abuse scandal and the ensuing financial turmoil that engulfed the Archdiocese of Boston's Catholic schools, he wanted to "help fix things."

"We simply would not be where we are, and who we are, without Jack," the Campaign for Catholic Schools said in its statement. "He has made us all better people and changed thousands of lives in the process. The Catholic schools we now support and for which we care so deeply would not exist today without Jack's vision."

The statement pointed out that thanks to Connors's generosity, children enrolled in Catholic schools in Dorchester, Mattapan, and Brockton are learning to follow his example of selflessness.

In his statement, the cardinal called Connors "a great friend and a great leader of our common life in Greater Boston."

"We are a better community of neighbors, friends, and citizens because he lived and worked among us for so long," Cardinal O'Malley said. "May he rest in peace and may his legacy be continued."

Connors graduated from Boston College in 1963 and served on its board of trustees from 1979 to 2018, remaining a trustee associate until his death. He co-chaired the "Ever to Excel" campaign, which raised $441 million for Boston College from 1997 to 2003. He also funded the Connors Learning Session on the BC campus, which provides tutoring to students and training to prospective teachers, and the Connors Family Retreat and Conference Center in Dover, which BC students and faculty use for retreats and meetings.

In 2007, Connors received an honorary doctorate from his alma mater.

"Jack Connors truly reflects the Ignatian principle that deeds, not words, are the measure of a person," the degree's citation read.

"Jack was a warm, engaging, positive individual who was a bridge builder and mediator in all that he did," Boston College President Father William P. Leahy, S.J., said in a statement. "He provided vision, inspiration, and challenge to BC throughout all his years of service. He was always a force for good and will be greatly missed by all of us in the Boston College community."

Connors's philanthropy continued until his death. He was to be co-chair of the 16th annual Celebration of the Priesthood gala dinner this fall. Every year, the Celebration of the Priesthood raises funds for Clergy Trust, which provides healthcare for priests and operates the Regina Cleri residence for senior priests in Boston.

"Jack Connors, Jr. was a man of great vision, faith, and generosity," the Catholic Community Fund said in its statement. "With his magnanimous spirit and his strong desire to effect change, he shared his time, energy, and resources to lift the lives of others in Boston."

The statement went on to call Connors "a wonderful force of nature who was deeply invested in creating opportunities for those less fortunate."

"He touched the lives of thousands and inspired even more," it continued. "He will be dearly missed."