John J. “Jack” Mahoney, Jr. · 1993 Honoree

In 1974, Jack Mahoney bought a Capitol Hill house that was the best value for the money, in an area with a sense of community, and close enough to work to avoid commuting. These criteria drive Jack Mahoney's decisions. Getting or giving value for money, finding something to which he can give his heart, and making time count.

Jack, second oldest of nine children, is from Columbus, Ohio, and received his first education in Catholic schools there. Then, on to Providence College (Rhode Island] for a BA and St. Stephen's College (Massachusetts] as a seminarian and for an MA in Psychology.

Jack transferred to Dominican College here in Washington for his work in theology. He relished academic life. When the college presented him with his first business opportunity, he discovered that he liked being an entrepreneur. He published a book on Vatican Il and tasted the success of "50,000 copies sold." What Jack wanted as well was life as a layman, not as a cleric. He left seminary, with ties so strong hat he serves on the College's Board of Directors.

Jack became a probation officer with D.C. Superior Court and squeezed in a Masters and Johnson training course. Stymied by probation officers' lack of power to affect change, he decided to become a third generation lawyer. His grandfather, who read law at night while working as a railroad "gandy dancer," inspired Jack to earn a J.D. from Catholic University while fully employed.

In 1976 Jack opened his law office exactly where it is now. It is so close to the home he shares with wife Jeanne and sons Dan and Bill that he can walk to work. Jack laughs about the start of his next business. He told a friend, "I'll do your settlement," so eight people crowded around the law office's tiny three-person table. Jack learned just how much the Hill needed a local title company and created Attorneys Title Company in 1977. It has grown to five offices because Jack endowed it with the capability to succeed in a metropolis and with the care a small town business gives its neighbors.

In 1981,Jack brought another idea to reality. He felt the Hill was ready for its own business and professional organization. As a co-founder, former president, and board member of CHAMPS [Capitol Hill Association of Merchants and Professionals] and the CHAMPS Foundation Jack has given Capitol Hill two vital community forces.

Next? In front of a wall filled with his honors and awards Jack says, "I’ll be right here, in a small town community that's never boring, that's a village in the center of the universe, playing a role in representing the Hill to a bigger audience. Spending my free hours reading—mostly business publications because I like to see the whole picture. 

One picture is crystal clear. Whatever he’ll be doing Jack Mahoney will bring with him critical assets, the heart of a man who cares deeply about the world around him, the highly-educated mind of an academician, and an uncanny eye for business. Capitol Hill is infinitely richer in heart and in business for Jack's having shared his assets with us.