The Peter J. Mulligan BC Rugby Fund was founded in fond memory of Pete Mulligan ’95 who this world lost on September 11, 2001. Pete left a legacy at Boston College of a kind, thoughtful and generous friend to so many people. He was a natural athlete, humble leader, role model and one heck of a rugby player. After a freshmen year of draining jump shots at the Newton Quonset Hut and dominating the intramural football circuit, his friends convinced him to try out for rugby as a sophomore.
Pete quickly rose the rugby depth charts and became the A-Side Scrumhalf where he was key member of the club’s A-side success for 3 years. Scrumhalf is a vital position on the pitch. It takes agility, handling skills, speed, thinking, kicking and evasion - Pete had all those skills in spades and he excelled. This position is also very much about service to others and this matched Pete’s character. This selfless man was most happy giving to others expecting nothing in return.
As good a rugby player as Pete was, he was an even better human being, teammate and friend. His legacy is not restricted his time on the pitch, his character represents the influence of amazing parents and family, and it permeated the relationships he forged in his hometown of Staten Island, his summer town of Breezy Point, NY, his time on the BC Campus and continued after BC into his professional career. He would meet the love of his life Sara and get married in May of 2001. As a testament to Pete’s selflessness, as much as he tried he could not get below 14 groomsmen. His friends meant the world to him – he could have asked 50 guys and they all would have said yes! It was a great celebration.
On September 11, 2001, Pete was at work as an associate vice president for international equity at Cantor Fitzgerald on the 104th floor of One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan. He left this earth on that day, but those that knew him, know he continued to serve others ahead of himself on that fateful day.
You can visit a memorial to Pete on campus as part of the beautiful memorial labyrinth in front of Bapst Library. You can also visit a tribute to him at the 9/11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan where there is a picture of Pete proudly wearing his BCRFC A-Side uniform after a successful match against Holy Cross.
You can also contribute to the Peter J. Mulligan BC Rugby Fund in his memory. This fund was established to specifically target all donations directly to the club in memory of a former member known for giving to others. In the coming years, we will honor Pete’s legacy with specific events, but we see this as the first step in allowing his character to serve as an example for the future men and women of BCRFC and for him to be acknowledged and remembered by the greater BC Rugby community.
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