Background

Raymond Leo Flynn was born on July 22, 1939, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. He is a son of Stephen and Lillian Flynn.

Education

Raymond Leo Flynn studied at South Boston High School (now the school building was renamed and houses Excel High School). In 1963 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Providence College. He was an All-American basketball player there, was selected Most Valuable Player in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) during his senior year, and was the last player cut from the then-World Champion Boston Celtics. In 1981 Flynn obtained a Master of Arts degree from Harvard University.

Career

Raymond Leo Flynn began his career in 1964 as a professional basketball player in Wilmington, Delaware. He was a substitute teacher in Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1965, and a probation officer in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, from 1965 to 1971. He was also a baseball and basketball coach at Stonehill College from 1967 to 1968. He served as a Massachusetts state representative from 1971 to 1978. In 1978 he became a Boston city councilor. He was a fellow at Harvard's John F. Kennedy Institute of Politics from 1982 to 1983.

He was elected the 46th Mayor of Boston on November 15, 1983. He was elected to a second term on November 3, 1987, and to a third term on November 5, 1991. Flynn resigned during his third term on July 12, 1993, when he was appointed United States Ambassador to the Holy See by President Clinton. He served as Ambassador from 1993-1997. Flynn ran unsuccessfully for Massachusetts 8th Congressional District seat in 1998.

Flynn’s first novel, The Accidental Pope, was co-written with Robin Moore, author of The French Connection. The plot dramatizes some of the moral issues that have been central to Flynn’s life while examining the “what-if’ scenario of a widowed American man with children who becomes pope. Bill Kelly, a former priest, and professional fisherman, comes to the attention of the College of Cardinals while they attempt to vote in a new pope following the death of Pope John Paul II. When the cardinals are unable to reach a consensus, they cast their votes for Kelly after Cardinal Comiskey regales the group with a story about how Kelly once saved his fellow seminarians from drowning. Meanwhile, Kelly has a vision of his good fortune and moves to Rome with his four children. As Pope Peter II, he travels the world attempting to bring peace and understanding to all races and creeds.

Flynn teamed up once again with Moore and joined Jim Vrabel in penning John Paul II: A Personal Portrait of the Pope and the Man. The book is a tribute to Flynn’s friendship with the pontiff he came to know well during his tenure as an ambassador at the Vatican in the mid- the1990s. More of a personal account than an objective view of the pope, the book reveals Flynn’s first impressions of the pope after the pontiff’s first visit to Boston in 1978, as well as his impressions of John Paul during his leadership of the Catholic church in the late twentieth century. In addition to the pope’s leadership abilities, Flynn is impressed with the man’s intellect and memory.

Flynn was selected to be the Grand Marshall in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York City on March 17, 2007. The parade has run for 249 consecutive years, and Flynn is only the fourth non-New Yorker to lead the internationally known parade, joining Irish Prime Minister Albert Reynolds, actress Maureen O’Hara, and business & sports leader Timothy Rooney. In 2010, Flynn was the Grand Marshall at the Cape Cod St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Achievements

• Raymond Leo Flynn earned wide national recognition and many awards for his leadership on reducing homelessness and ensuring quality housing and health care for homeless individuals and families during his service as a Mayor of Boston.
  
  He holds honorary doctorates from Northeastern University, Curry College, Providence College, Suffolk University, Emmanuel College, the New England School of Law and Framington State College, and awards from the New England Irish American Labor Coalition, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National Invitational Tournament, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Boys Clubs of America and the Emerald Society.

Works

More photos

• book

  • The Accidental Pope

    (Written with the style of bestselling novelist Robin Moor...)

    2000
  • John Paul II: A Personal Portrait of the Pope and the Man

    (Unlike any other pope, John Paul II has reached out, crea...)

    2001

Religion

Raymond Leo Flynn served in executive and advisory roles for such lay Catholic political advocacy organizations as Your Catholic Voice, Catholic Citizenship, and Catholics for the Common Good. During his tenure at the Vatican, Flynn solidified his friendship with Pope John Paul II and aimed to be active in more than a ceremonial capacity.

Politics

As Mayor of Boston, Raymond Leo Flynn was constantly at the center of attention in the city. In addition to reducing the city’s debt, revitalizing its infrastructure, and increasing its bond rating, he was often on hand during emergencies and more than once rescued people from burning buildings. Politically, his commitment to race relations and reducing poverty necessitated that businesses work with neighborhoods, a strategy that resulted in an easing of Boston’s racial tensions during the late 1980s.

Flynn’s national profile increased when he was named chair of the United States Conference of Mayors in 1991. He used his position as a national spokesperson to lobby for more social programs for the homeless and a revision of the federal election system, which he claimed under-represented urban voters. He campaigned for Clinton in 1992.

Views

While serving as a Mayor of Boston, Raymond Leo Flynn is known for building social and economic bridges that linked a prosperous downtown to affordable housing, jobs, and other opportunities for better lives in every neighborhood. He is an advocate for parents of children with special needs and a lifelong anti-abortion activist.

Quotations: "People will support somebody who they think believes what he says and stands for."

"Rich people are powerful in wealth but few in votes."

Membership

Raymond Leo Flynn is a member of the International Longshoremen’s Union, the American Ireland Fund, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Knights of Columbus, Boston’s Museums of Fine Arts and Science and the National Commission on Children.

Personality

Raymond Leo Flynn's fearless attitude earned him the nicknames "Raybo" and "the human 911." In addition, he found time during his tenure as a Mayor of Boston to run both the Boston and New York City marathons.

Interests

• running

• Politicians

  Scott Phillip Brown, John W. McCormack

• Sport & Clubs

  basketball

Connections

Raymond Leo Flynn is married to Catherine Coyne. They have six children: Raymond L. Jr., Edward, Julie, Nancy, Katherine, Maureen.

Father:

Stephen Flynn

Mother:

Lillian Flynn

Spouse:

Catherine Coyne

Son:

Edward Flynn

Daughter:

Maureen Flynn

Son:

Raymond L. Flynn, Jr.

Daughter:

Katherine Flynn

Daughter:

Julie Flynn

Daughter:

Nancy Flynn

Friend:

Pope John Paul II

Acquaintance:

Mother Teresa

References

• Contemporary Authors
  2010