Michael T. McCarthy learned the value of hard work early in life, after his father died when he was just 7 years old, leaving Mr. McCarthy and his mother on their own. But that adversity didn’t stop Mr. McCarthy from rising in life. While working by day as an accountant, first to provide for his mother and then for his own family of seven, he attended school at night to receive his undergraduate and law degrees. Mr. McCarthy, 74, of Beverly died Wednesday, Feb. 11, of heart failure in Palos Community Hospital. While the captain of the debate team at De La Salle High School, Mr. McCarthy met his wife, Joyce Collins, who was an opponent on the team at Longwood Academy. They married in 1953 and shared a lifelong passion for learning. “I think my mom and dad’s library is bigger than the Library of Congress, with all the books they read over the years,” said Mr. McCarthy’s son Patrick. Mr. McCarthy received a dual-major degree in accounting and English at Loyola University Chicago and graduated from John Marshall Law School in 1966. Practicing mostly corporate law, he went on to form the Loop law firm of Michael T. McCarthy and Associates. He was heavily involved in the American Arbitration Association and taught personal property at John Marshall. In 1978, Mr. McCarthy had the first of four open-heart surgeries, from which he always returned to work within a month. “We used to tease he had 900 lives,” his son said. Despite his heart troubles, Mr. McCarthy, who had been a high school basketball player in his freshman and sophomore years, coached grammar-school basketball at Christ the King Church later in life, when his son Daniel was a player. “He was very succinct,” his son said. “You always knew where Dad stood. He was a very direct person, but he loved to laugh, loved to enjoy himself and loved his family.” In addition to his wife and sons, Mr. McCarthy is survived by two other sons, Michael and Thomas; a daughter, Eileen Luce; and 11 grandchildren. A mass will be said at 10 a.m. Saturday in Christ the King Catholic Church, 9235 S. Hamilton Ave., Chicago.
