John Gregory Berylson
BERYLSON, John Gregory of Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts passed away on July 4, 2023, at age 70, in a tragic accident. He will be remembered by his family and friends as a man of powerful intellect, unwavering courage, and steadfast values. John achieved enormous success in business while he simultaneously built a beautiful family and marriage with his wife Amy of 45 years. He was a deeply caring and connected father and grandfather to his three children and six grandchildren. John was a force of nature, whether in the boardroom, on the golf course, on the ski slopes, or at the dinner table, always armed with strong opinions and deep knowledge to share with others.
John was born in 1953 in New York City to Kermit J. and Marjorie C. Berylson. He was deeply inspired by and derived his strength of character from his father, a highly decorated World War II veteran, who led the liberation of Dachau under General George S. Patton and received the Royal Order of Vasa by the Kingdom of Sweden for services rendered to the Crown. From his father, John developed a passion for reading and history that would continue throughout his life. His mother was one of John’s greatest fans who passed to him a set of strong values, which was reflected in his dedication to family.
John attended the Riverdale Country School in the Bronx, followed by Brown University, where he was recruited to play football. He remained a staunch supporter of the team throughout his life and was awarded the Andrew J. Joslin ’65 Award and the Bob Hall Award for outstanding contributions to Brown Football. Playing football at Riverdale and Brown fostered in John a fierce competitive spirit that permeated all aspects of his life. After graduation, he received a M.S. from New York University and spent two years at the accounting firm Peat Marwick. He then attended Harvard Business School, where he would meet his wife, Amy Joy Smith, during their first day of class. Soon after, they passed notes to each other from their fortuitously assigned seats. Their courtship was accelerated by the famous blizzard of 1978 and they were engaged within three months, married after their first year of business school, and began their family immediately following graduation.
John’s illustrious career began to take shape after HBS when he joined Paine Webber, followed by Cowen and Company, as an investment banker. John received numerous early promotions and was instrumental in sourcing and successfully executing a number of the most prominent initial public offerings of his era, most notably those of Genzyme and Genentech. Transitioning in the early 1990’s to an investing role, John worked first at Advent International prior to founding GCC Investments in 1993. At Advent, he took a keen interest in Eastern Europe as it emerged from the USSR, and would later make several investments in the region, including Vision Express. GCC was the investment arm of General Cinema Corporation, a conglomerate run by his father-in-law Richard A. Smith, with whom he had an incredibly close relationship until Richard’s passing in 2020.
At GCC, John notably invested in FleetCor Technologies. He had a particularly active role in the evolution of FleetCor into a business payment solutions company built through organic growth and acquisitions. He had several roles at the company, including Chairman of the Board of Directors. Ultimately, John laid the foundation for what would become one of the most successful payment platform rollups of the modern era. After the initial public offering in 2010, John remained a long-term and engaged shareholder. Commenting on his passing, Ron Clarke, CEO of Fleetcor said, “He was a lifelong business partner and friend… a guy in your corner making the journey so, so much sweeter.”
John had a particular affinity for the United Kingdom. He appreciated its history and significance so much that when he was contacted by a former Paine Webber colleague about a storied English football club in distress, John was intrigued by the opportunity. The club, Millwall FC, had been relegated to the depths of English football, and was in desperate need of leadership and capital. As he had done in the past, John applied his passion, sheer will and determination into transforming the club from a lower division team to a perennial contender on the cusp of the Premier League. John’s connection with the fan base was unique and everlasting, and he was often mobbed after games for selfies and autographs by the fans, who affectionately referred to John as their “Chairman.” The fans saw in John what he saw in himself – he was one of them, wanted to win as badly as they did, fought for them, and recognized that they were every bit the owner that he was.
John was a generous philanthropist to the causes he deeply believed in, devoting time and resources to charitable and civic engagements. He served as Chairman of the Boston Police Athletic League (BPAL) for nearly a decade during the early 2000’s. He was also deeply involved in the Brown Sports Foundation and the Brown Football Association, and served as a longtime Trustee of the Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation.
John would say that his real success was building his family. John and Amy were true partners in all aspects of life. Immediately following HBS graduation, John and Amy had their first child, Jennifer, followed shortly after by their son, James, and daughter, Elizabeth. John was enormously devoted to his three children and their academic, athletic, and professional achievements. He flew home from Europe to see them compete in athletic events, only to return the very next day for meetings in Europe; and he loved coaching undefeated town little league teams using the most advanced statistical methods available at the time. John was a voracious reader with a collection of over 100,000 books. He recently won the 2023 International Thriller Writers “Fan of the Year” Award, and he was passionate about accumulating knowledge about everything from current events to events of 3,000 years ago. John was a student of history, always with a book in his hand, and he cared deeply about imparting his accumulated knowledge to his children and grandchildren.
In John’s later years, his grandchildren brought him true joy. He would spend as much time as possible with them, often including them in his favorite activities, whether it be skiing in Killington, Vermont, or playing golf near their family’s home in Cape Cod. He also reveled in taking his grandchildren out for ice cream or teaching them chess. He would spend countless hours scouring the shelves of Barnes & Nobles for the latest Legos to build with them. “Papa” John was beloved by many of his children’s and grandchildren’s friends for his legendary stories and continuous presence.
He is survived and lovingly remembered by his wife of 45 years, Amy Smith Berylson; their children, Jennifer Berylson Block and husband Jonathan Block, James T. Berylson, Elizabeth Berylson Katz and husband Robert Katz; his six grandchildren, Benjamin, Zachary, and Alexander Block; Thomas, Sara, and William Katz; his sister, Jane Flechner and husband Stephen Flechner, his brother-in-law Robert Smith and wife Dana Smith, his sister-in-law Debra S. Knez and partner D.J. Bosse; and many adoring nieces and nephews.
A private graveside funeral will be held. Shiva visiting hours at his home in Wellesley Hills will be held on Monday, July 10th, Tuesday, July 11th, and Wednesday, July 12th from 2 to 5 pm.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Berylson Family Research Fund at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284 or http://danafarber.jimmyfund.org/goto/JohnBerylson.