Jack Byrne, a beacon of generosity in the Wildwoods

Last Updated on Tuesday, March 19, 2013 04:57 pm Written by Brian Cunniff Tuesday, March 19, 2013 04:48 pm

The obituaries that appeared in major newspapers and on countless websites earlier this month spoke of the many professional accomplishments of Jack Byrne.

They mentioned how he saved Geico, how he was called “the Babe Ruth of insurance” by renowned billionaire and close friend Warren Buffett, how he later rescued the floundering Fireman’s Fund and led it to the largest initial public offering of its time for American Express, how he was named the Insurance Industry Leader of the Year in 2001 and how he was a top executive at Travelers Corp.

But what none of those obituaries highlighted was the charitable work Jack Byrne did, almost always behind the scenes, right here in the Wildwoods.

Mr. Byrne, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 80 after a battle with cancer, was a 1950 graduate of Wildwood High School, moving to the area from Millville as a young teenager after being born in Paterson. His father started the Byrne Insurance Agency, now one of the largest private companies in Cape May County and one of the most popular insurance agencies in South Jersey.

Through the accomplishments listed above and many others, Mr. Byrne made a lot of money both for himself and for other people. But, especially in this area, his legacy will be less for his shrewd business acumen and more for his amazing, generous philanthropy.

Mr. Byrne’s charitable donations have been many – too many to count, really. Among the most notable was a total of $13 million to Dartmouth University, where he dedicated Byrne Hall at the Amos Tuck School to his three sons, who each attended the university. He sat on dozens of boards, including the International Special Olympics and the National Symphony Orchestra, but, most notably, his own Byrne Foundation.

“He was always interested in doing anything he thought was good for the community,” said Jim Byrne, Mr. Byrne’s younger brother who is retired from running the family insurance business and is among the Board of Directors for the Byrne Foundation. “His generosity touched so many people in so many walks of life. He always told us to try to do a lot of good for the arts and for the schools and for kids.”

The Byrne Foundation benefits a variety of charitable causes in different parts of the country but has a chapter right here in the Wildwoods. Close to 15 years ago, Mr. Byrne pledged college scholarship money to graduating student-athletes at Wildwood High School through the Warrior 50 Booster Club. To date, the foundation has awarded close to $300,000 by giving five students each year $4,000 apiece in college scholarship money for a total of $20,000 annually.

“It goes without saying that he’s certainly an individual who has given back to his community and has never forgotten where he came from,” said Warrior 50 Booster Club president Dave Troiano. “A tremendous number of people have benefited from his generosity, and a lot of the people he’s helped never even met him.”

Jim Byrne said the foundation plans to continue to fund Warrior 50 scholarship money “indefinitely” despite his brother’s passing.

One of Mr. Byrne’s greatest donations came in 2006, when his foundation awarded $1 million toward the construction of a new recreation center in Wildwood, the sparkling Byrne Community Center located between the football and baseball fields at the Maxwell Field athletic complex on the west side of the city. The facility replaced the old, dilapidated and underused Wildwood Recreation Center on Rio Grande Avenue and gives the children of the community a safe haven at which to congregate and play.

City of Wildwood mayor Ernie Troiano Jr., who’s no relation to Dave Troiano, fondly recalls a conversation with attorney Steve Rubins, one of the key members of the Byrne Foundation’s Board of Directors, about the application process for the money for the community center.

“I went to Steve Rubins and asked him if the Byrne Foundation would be interested in helping us build a community center,” he said. “He asked me how much we were looking for and I was almost kidding when I said we’d love $1 million. He laughed and said he didn’t know about that but to fill out the application anyway. I just said, ‘Hey, if we get even just $1 more than we already have we’d appreciate it.’ … Later I get a call from Steve and he said he and Jim Byrne were talking about our request and everyone decided that there’s no better way to spend this money than on education and things for our kids and that we had our $1 million. Needless to say, when someone hands you $1 million, you’re so overwhelmed you don’t know how to react. But it was an unbelievable, tremendous help for us.

“That community center means a lot to me. It means we have 100 or 150 or 200 kids a day off the streets and in a safe place. The island as a whole is benefitting from it with all the programs we have there. We’re able to give a full recreational experience from little kids all the way through adults.”

Mayor Troiano spoke glowingly of the man who made it all possible.

“Jack Byrne never forgot who gave him his grounding to move forward, who gave him his education and who his friends were,” he said. “Most people don’t understand the magnitude of Jack Byrne. He’s probably one of the most influential people in the country that nobody ever heard about. What a great man.”

In 2004, Mr. Byrne donated nearly $100,000 to restore music and band programs at Wildwood High School.

“That was one of the ones he was most proud of,” said Jim Byrne, whose brother played various instruments. “He was always very fond of helping anything having to do with music.”

Specific examples of other donations include $100,000 to Cape Volunteers for medicine, prescriptions and transportation; nearly $60,000 to various programs at Burdette Tomlin Memorial/Cape Regional Hospital; $50,000 to Cape Assist; $45,000 to the First Presbyterian Church of Wildwood for its after-school program; $25,000 to St. Simeon’s for the construction of a children’s playground; $18,000 to Margaret Mace Elementary School toward its music program; and $10,000 to Wildwood Catholic High School toward the purchase of computers and smart boards.

The Byrne Foundation has also funded various school trips, other non-profit endeavors geared toward the arts and many other small but significant causes.

In all, Byrne Foundation donations in the Wildwoods have totaled approximately $2.8 million just since 2000.

“He had extraordinary humility,” said Pam Byrne Gentek, Mr. Byrne’s niece, who also sits on the Board of Directors for the Byrne Foundation in the Wildwoods. “Anyone who met him was surprised at how humble he was. You’d never know he was the man he was, the way he carried himself.”

Mr. Byrne is survived by his wife, Dorothy, his three sons and many other extended family members. He’s also survived by a legacy of enormous philanthropy that has made a major positive impact on the small beach island he once called home.