Leo J. McCabe, 87, retired Mobil Oil executive and former mayor of Glassboro
When Mr. McCabe took the reins as mayor of Glassboro in 2002 he wanted to make the borough more sustainable and to redevelop it. He made great strides in both, a borough spokesman said.
Leo J. McCabe, 87, a retired senior consultant at Mobil Oil and the former mayor of Glassboro, died Sunday.
“Leo J. McCabe will be remembered as a mayor whose vision and energy helped Glassboro evolve,” said borough spokesman Lavon Phillips.
Mr. McCabe, a Glassboro resident since 1962, began his tenure as a public servant by joining the Glassboro planning board in 1964.
He served on the Glassboro Board of Education from 1973 to 1992 and was president of the Glassboro education foundation from 1998 to 2001.
But his influence was felt most strongly when he was elected mayor on the Democratic ticket. He took the reins as mayor in 2002 and served four terms until stepping down in May 2018.
Mr. McCabe helped Glassboro, a small borough which had needed redevelopment since 2000, achieve a comeback, Phillips said in the statement. It’s now a livable, thriving small city, he said.
Mr. McCabe made sustainability the clear direction for the future. He encouraged the building of school gardens that educate and feed thousands of children yearly; a new town square; and a LEED-certified boulevard redevelopment project.
“Leo McCabe spent 17 years reshaping Glassboro into the city we know,” said Mayor John E. Wallace. III. ”Even if you didn’t know his name, you saw and experienced the significant ways he made our borough better.
“Leo was integral to the revitalization of downtown Glassboro and successfully led our council and all borough departments to expand Glassboro’s significant regional impact.”
For example, he helped to establish the Boys and Girls Club of Gloucester County/Glassboro in 2002.
“Not only was he an incredibly humble man, he was also a civic leader who was a champion for human rights and civil harmony,” Phillips said. “We will be forever in his debt.”
A native of Rhode Island, Mr. McCabe earned a doctorate in organic chemistry from Ohio State University. He retired from Mobil Oil as a senior consultant and manager of fuels and air quality research.
In 1963, he joined the Paulsboro facility of Mobil Research & Development Corp. as manager/research consultant.
In July 1988, he was named manager/senior consultant with responsibility for directing research and consulting with other Mobil units on matters involving fuels, automotive emissions, and air-quality.
Mr. McCabe retired from Mobil Oil as a senior consultant and manager of fuels and air quality research. He holds numerous patents and was recognized as an expert in fuels and air quality.
Mr. McCabe was a member of the Church of St. Bridget and St. Anthony’s Society.
He was an executive board member of the New Jersey League of Municipalities and its legislative committee, a former president of the Gloucester County Mayors’ Association, and a board member of the New Jersey Conference of Mayors.
In May 2015, Mr. McCabe was recognized by Rowan University with an honorary doctor of humanities degree during the commencement ceremony for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Mr. McCabe had been a strong supporter of Rowan University, the school’s president, Ali A. Houshmand, said in an April 2015 statement announcing the honor.
“Mayor McCabe has been an active partner in the development of Rowan Boulevard and countless other initiatives that have led to the betterment of our community,” Houshmand said.
Mr. McCabe’s wife, Mary S. McCabe, died in 2014. He is survived by daughters Patty Kaufman and Beth Reeves; a son Tom; and five grandchildren.
Funeral arrangements were pending.