[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 9 (Thursday, January 13, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S218-S219]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                     REMEMBERING ROBERT J. O'BRIEN

 Mr. HAGERTY. Mr. President, Robert J. O'Brien, Sr., age 103, 
passed away on January 4, 2022. A native of Chicago, O'Brien returned 
home after serving in the Navy during the Second World War and 
graduated from DePaul University.
  Soon after, Mr. O'Brien joined John V. McCarthy & Co., the 
predecessor of R.J. O'Brien & Associates, where he focused on client 
and business research. By 1959, Mr. O'Brien was named President of John 
V. McCarthy & Co. and, in

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1964, was elected to the Board of Governors of the Chicago Mercantile 
Exchange, a position he held continuously until 1977. He served as 
Chairman of the Exchange from 1967 to 1968 and was inducted into the 
FIA Futures Hall of Fame in 2007.
  During his tenure on the Board of Governors, contracts on live 
animals were successfully introduced to the market, representing the 
first in a wave of innovation in contract design. He was also involved 
in changing the structure of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to make it 
more democratic and in revitalizing the audits and investigations 
department to attract new exchange members.
  Mr. O'Brien's entrepreneurial spirit is best illustrated in his 
countless contributions to the futures industry as he built the largest 
independent futures brokerage and clearing firm in the United States. 
He pioneered new industry practices and created opportunity for others, 
including taking delivery of the first live cattle contract traded on 
the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, broadcasting the first live commodity 
report from the trading floor, and sponsoring the first woman to work 
on the trading floor in 1966.
  The longevity of Mr. O'Brien's career and the lasting success of his 
company are a testament to the focus placed on the relationships that 
have been built with more than 80,000 clients, his employees, and his 
family. Mr. O'Brien is survived by five children, 22 grandchildren, and 
33 great grandchildren.

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