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Former North Shore Councilman Jerome X. O'Donovan, a 'gentleman warrior' for Staten Island, dies at 70

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Former Democratic North Shore City Councilman Jerome X. O'Donovan, 70, a decorated hero of the Vietnam War who was a gentlemanly and affable voice in the sometimes sharp-elbowed world of Staten Island politics, died Thursday at his Dongan Hills Colony home.
"Jay O'Donovan, a true gentleman, was a warrior for Staten Island and for America," said U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) "He served in Vietnam and never stopped serving the public as he pursued a long and accomplished career as a councilman and more."

Mr. O'Donovan, known to one and all as "Jay," was elected to the Council in 1982.
A lifelong Staten Islander, Mr. O'Donovan was born in Concord and grew up in Dongan Hills Colony. He lived in Arrochar after his marriage, and later moved back to Dongan Hills Colony.

The first Vietnam veteran to be elected to the City Council, Mr. O'Donovan was a graduate of New Dorp High School, where he played football. He is a member of the high school's Hall of Fame and of the football team's Hall of Fame.
He received a bachelor's degree in political science from Marshall University, and attended the University of Oklahoma Law School before attending the U.S. Marine Corps Officers' Candidate School in Quantico, Va.

During his college years, he also worked as a lifeguard at Midland Beach.

Mr. O'Donovan's career in public service began in 1974, when became assistant to then-Borough President Robert T. Connor. Mr. O'Donovan had also worked with the Island's Borough Board and community groups.

He was also an assistant to Democratic Borough President Anthony Gaeta.
In 1978, he became a staff analyst with the Department of Personnel, and a year later became an administrative staff analyst for Department of Transportation Commissioner Anthony Ameruso.


At DOT, Mr. O'Donovan was an assistant to Highway Commissioner Henry Fulton and a liaison to labor unions and the borough superintendents.

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