John Anthony Cervieri, Jr.

John A. Cervieri Jr., of Wakefield, RI, passed away peacefully on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2025, after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 94 years old.

Born on January 28, 1931, in Suffern, NY, he was the son of John and Elizabeth Cervieri. John Cervieri is survived by Inge (Auerbacher), children Stephen and his wife Lisa, their sons John III and Mark; Tina and her husband Larry Flick, their children Oliver and Sadie; Michael and his wife Homa, their daughters Zomorōd and Yasna; and Peter and his wife Hillary, and their daughters Gemma, Valentina, and Carolina. He is predeceased by his siblings Joseph, Betty, and MaryLu.

John helped revolutionize real estate investment by founding one of the nation's earliest Real Estate Investment Trusts, establishing his career in REITs in 1969 when he raised $35 million to create Property Capital Trust in Boston. During a three-decade career that helped shape modern institutional real estate investing, his company oversaw approximately $3 billion in property investments across 26 states.

John charted an inspiring path from a Depression-era childhood to real estate investment innovator, finding romance along the way with a German visitor who abandoned plans to return home after falling in love with the dashing young businessman.

Born in Suffern, NY, John became an all-state basketball player and a precocious scholar at Fort Lee High School in New Jersey, graduating at the age of 16. He was the first in his family to attend college, where he studied humanities at Columbia University in New York City. John was on the Columbia University basketball team but had to quit and work in the school cafeteria to pay his way through college.

Following graduation at the age of 20, John entered the United States Air Force where he was commissioned as a pilot. He achieved the rank of First Lieutenant and was a combat veteran of the Korean War. During his service, he displayed his mischievous personality as Captain of a B-26 bomber by frequently “buzzing” the airbases before being called in by the commanding officer to be reprimanded.

After his honorable discharge in 1955, he attended Harvard Business School, where his selection as a Baker Scholar recognized him as one of the top students of his graduating class. He returned to New York and began his real estate career.

His life became fuller in 1960 when he met Eva-Inge Auerbacher, then visiting from Nuremberg, Germany, on what she intended was a one-year stay in America. His courtship led to their sixty-year marriage.

During his first years working out of New York City, John had a fateful encounter with Royal Little, CEO and founder of Textron Corporation. During a meeting in which the company John was working for was trying to sell Textron on a deal, John advised Mr. Little not to proceed with the investment opportunity. Impressed by John’s candor, Mr. Little offered him a position to lead real estate operations for Textron. This also meant moving to Providence, RI.

In 1969, John took an entrepreneurial leap to establish one of the nation's first REITs, which he did in Boston. With a young family in tow, he moved to Dover, MA, ultimately having two more children. The family started summering in Narragansett, RI. Winters found the family in Waterville Valley, NH, where they became involved with the mountain’s Black and Blue Trail Smashers race club.

During his near 30-year stewardship of Property Capital Trust, the company grew to manage billions in real estate investments for a roster of clients that included the endowments of Harvard, Yale, Columbia, MIT, Duke, and Stanford universities, as well as pension funds for US Steel, General Electric, and the World Bank, among others.

His expertise and leadership were widely recognized, leading to his service as Chairman of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts and Chairman of the Listed Company Advisory Committee of the American Stock Exchange. He also served on the boards of BankBoston Corporation and BayBanks, Inc. (both now Bank of America).

John maintained a strong commitment to community service, serving as a trustee and overseer of the New England Medical Center and as a member of the corporation of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He also served on the Governor's Management Task Force for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

After retiring in 1995, John and his wife divided their time between Naples, Florida and Narragansett, Rhode Island. Until recently he remained an active athlete in tennis and golf, keeping his skills sharp at Bay Colony Club (FL), Pt. Judith Country Club (RI), and the Dunes Club (RI). He was a former member and board member of the Dedham Country Club (MA) and Harvard Club (MA).

John passed away two weeks after celebrating his 94th birthday with family and friends.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 am on Friday February, 21, 2025, in St. Francis of Assisi Church, 14 High St, South Kingstown, RI.