Francis Joseph Brennan of Roseland, NJ, passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on Sunday, November 13, 2016. He was 84. Born in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, on November 29, 1931, he was the son of a coal miner and factory worker. He attended Notre Dame University, and went on to a nearly 40-year career in global finance with the W.R. Grace & Co. in New York City. He was the son of the late Martin F. (a union organizer who helped establish the United Mine Workers of America) and Elizabeth (Higgins) Brennan. He was a graduate of Pottsville Catholic High School, where he played football, worked as a life guard, and attended his senior prom in 1949 with a classmate, the former Jeanne Burns. Mr. Brennan studied economics at Notre Dame University, and was graduated with honors in 1953. He served with the U.S. Army in Munich, Germany. Returning stateside, he began his distinguished career in finance in New York City and rekindled a romance with his senior prom date. Francis and Jeanne were married on November 30, 1957 and lived for many years with their children, Marty and Nancy Brennan, in Livingston and Roseland, New Jersey. Mr. Brennan’s 37-year career was mostly in acquisitions and corporate finance with W.R. Grace & Co. He traveled extensively for work, and helped lead the company’s expansion into South America. He was one of the last American businessmen to leave Cuba when Fidel Castro took power. He retired in 1993 as Senior Vice President and Treasurer. A devoted Catholic, he worked after retirement with the Archdiocese of New York during the restructuring of the city’s Catholic school system. Mr. Brennan loved to travel and ride motorcycles, and was an avid photographer and collector. He is survived by Jeanne Brennan, his beloved wife of nearly 60 years; his son, Marty and his wife Debby Brennan (of Halifax, Pa.); his daughter, Nancy (of New York City); his grandchildren, Jasmine (and her husband Dan Rudy), Marty, and Ryan Brennan; his great-grandson, Daniel Rudy; his sister, Ellen Couper of Rhode Island; his brother, Tom Brennan of South Carolina; and many loving extended family members and friends. He was predeceased by his parents and his siblings, Regina (Brennan) Origoni, Martin Brennan, and Joseph Brennan. His family will receive visitors at the Quinn-Hopping Funeral Home of Livingston, NJ, 145 East Mt. Pleasant Avenue, from 4 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, November 17. On Friday, November 18, a funeral will be held from Quinn-Hopping at 10 a.m., with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:15 a.m. at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, 28 Livingston Avenue, Roseland, New Jersey. Interment will follow immediately at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 225 Ridgedale Avenue, East Hanover, New Jersey. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Roseland First Aid Squad, 300 Eagle Rock Avenue, Roseland, New Jersey 07068.
