OBITUARY | John Clay

John Clay, 93, of Longboat Key and formerly of Chicago, died Oct. 17.

Born Nov. 27, 1921, in Kansas City, Mo., Mr. Clay was a graduate of Carleton College and Harvard Law School. He was a senior partner in the Chicago law firm Mayor, Brown and Platt until his retirement in 1988. At that time, he was also the president of the Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) in Chicago. He resigned as president and was hired as the first executive director of PILI. In this new role, he expanded the reach and positive impact of PILI programs on the lives of many people who could not have otherwise had access to legal services.

In 1952, Mr. Clay helped persuade Illinois Gov. Adlai Stevenson to run for president as part of a genuine “draft Adlai” movement. In 1968, he became chairman of a Chicago group that strongly supported Sen. Eugene McCarthy’s first bid for president, which convinced President Johnson not to seek reelection due to strong opposition to the Vietnam War. When McCarthy ran again in 1976, he picked Mr. Clay as his running mate in Illinois. Their ticket received 60,000 votes.

In 2000, Mr. Clay published his book of words “by, for and against our presidents from Washington to Clinton,” entitled “Snollygosters, Airheads and Wimps,” with a foreword by his longtime friend, Eugene McCarthy.

He was a civil rights advocate, environmental activist, humanitarian, word maven, author, tree farmer, log cabin builder, mountain climber, skier and loving husband and father. Passionate about living life fully and genuinely interested in other people’s lives and endeavors, he retained an inspiring vitality and engagement with life to the end. His many friends and family remember his enthusiasm for doing the impossible, and he did so many times in his long life.

Mr. Clay is survived by his wife of 42 years, Mary Dailey; sons Peter and Scott; daughter, Anna McCann; and five grandchildren.

Donations in honor of his life may be made to the American Civil Liberties Union or the Public Interest law Initiative.