Obituary of John J. Clancy

Beloved Husband, Father, Brother, Grandfather and Friend John J. Clancy, 68, of West Caldwell, N.J., passed away on Sunday, May 15th, 2016 surrounded by his family. John was a loving father, husband, brother, grandfather, and loyal friend. He was a Vietnam War Veteran, philanthropist, counselor, and an accomplished entrepreneur who will always be remembered as a pioneer in the fields of addiction treatment and prisoner reentry. Throughout his adult life, John founded and led a number of social service organizations whose common purpose was to help those who were traditionally underserved by society. Shortly after returning from the Vietnam War, he founded The Bridge in West Caldwell, N.J., a youth counseling center, and Essex Valley School, an alternative school in Essex County. In 1978, John founded Education & Health Centers of America with the purpose of treating addicted individuals and their affected families. John also spent a number of years as the Executive Director of the Division of Youth Services in Essex County where he advocated for children's special interests and was responsible for the many abandoned, abused, and neglected children of the county. It was during his time in this position that he began to notice a cycle of recidivism in the state's correctional institutions and developed his belief that the deinstitutionalization and rehabilitation of both children and adults would lead to a decrease in incarceration and a better society. In 1994, he turned his company's focus from providing addiction treatment services to the public toward providing similar treatment services to a criminal justice population to better prepare them to reenter society after incarceration. In 1996, he founded another company called Community Education Centers with the vision of expanding these programs around the country. CEC eventually grew to operate over 100 correctional treatment programs in 22 states, employing over 4,000 individuals. These programs have provided much needed services to hundreds of thousands of individuals throughout the country. John has held more than a dozen offices for various organizations and has been selected for more than 30 community service awards, including the Ernst & Young "Entrepreneur of the Year" award and the 1999 "Award of the Nineties" from the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence for his pioneering work with drug-affected inmates. He was a former board member of several companies, the former President of the Forest Hill Golf Club, and most recently became CEO of Turning Point, a drug & alcohol rehabilitation center in Paterson, NJ. John is survived by his wife of 31 years, Jesse Clancy, his three adult children, Jessica Clancy-Viavattine, Jaclyn Clancy, and John Clancy Jr., his granddaughter, Hadley Viavattine, his sister, Lynn Hughes and his son-in-law, Sam Viavattine. John was strong, gentle, and kind. He dedicated his professional and personal life to helping others. He loved his family deeply and was incredibly proud of each of them. He considered his wife to be his best friend and true partner in life, and together they built a life full of happiness and love. He laughed often with friends and family, and was truly grateful for the life that he lived. The family will welcome guests at Notre Dame Church, 359 Central Avenue, North Caldwell, NJ 07006 on Friday, May 20th from 4PM until 8PM. A Funeral Mass will be held at the Church on Saturday, May 21st at 10:00 A.M. A private family burial will follow. Arrangements in care of the Codey & Jones Funeral Home of Caldwell. To share a memory, condolence and directions, please visit www.codeyjonesfh.com. In lieu of flowers, donations in John's memory to the West Essex First Aid Squad, PO Box 662, West Caldwell, NJ 07006 or Turning Point, 680 Broadway, Paterson, NJ 07514 (www.tpnj.org) would be greatly appreciated.