Thomas Patrick Corcoran passed away on August 30, 2026 after a long illness. He was 82 years old.

Tom had a storied career in the redevelopment of both sides of the Delaware River waterfront as a founder and CEO of the Cooper’s Ferry Development Association in Camden, New Jersey and as the first president of the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. During his 25 years at the helm of Cooper’s Ferry, he rebuilt much of the largely abandoned post-industrial Camden waterfront. Then in 2009, he crossed the river to take on the challenge of redeveloping the central 7 mile waterfront in Philadelphia. Tom was a visionary urban planner and economic development strategist with short term practicality and long term vision.

Upon completing a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the Wharton School in 1975, Tom joined a group of young men know as the “whiz kids” in managing Camden City government under than Mayor Angelo Errichetti. He worked in Camden City government for 9 years finally holding the highest appointed position of Business Administrator.

Tom was incorruptible and loved the political challenges of raising Federal, State, local and private funds to build the numerous projects which transformed the Camden industrial waterfront into an attractive, accessible urban space. These projects included the Adventure Aquarium, the Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, and the Camden Waterfront Park to name a few. On the Philadelphia side Tom was instrumental in the creation and adoption of an overall Master Plan for the central waterfront. He also began the creation of a series of new public spaces including Race Street Pier and Spruce Street Harbor Park. Bill Hankowsky, a longtime friend from Wharton and Camden City government colleague reflected on Tom’s impact, “it is truly unique that a single individual could have the vast impact across two facing waterfronts in the center of one of the Country’s major urban metros”.

Tom graduated from Loyola University Chicago, his hometown, with a degree in political science He joined the Peace Corps and was the first group of volunteers to serve in Chad, in central Africa. He lived in the small remote village , Baga Sola, on the shore of Lake Chad’s Bol district helping farmers build earthen dams and wells. Speaking Kanembu, the local language and French, Tom was quickly appointed a volunteer leader. The type of leadership role which emerged throughout his life. He loved the work, rode to job sites on a camel, contracted Schistosomiasis from the lake and went to DC for treatment. His medical evacuation happened at the time of Martin Luther King’s assassination. He saw DC burning from his hospital bed and yearned for the peace of his village in Chad.

He came back to DC at the end of his Chad tour and was named a prestigious Peace Corps Fellow and went on to become the Peace Corps director in Dahomey (Benin today) in West Africa.

Charles Yonkers, who replaced Tom in Dahomey and became a lifelong fried said, “from our first meeting in Dahomey in 1972, Tom became a friend, counselor and compatriot who was respected and loved for his experience, values, executive skills and humor. Beneath his professionalism bubbled a sensitive intellect with a creative and light hearted humor. What an exemplary life he led, without fanfare or drama and always with service to others.”

Tom was above all an Irish poet. He would recite stanzas from Ulysses and other great poets at parties and sing the mournful songs of his ancestors. A trusted colleague and a kind and thoughtful friend, his stories and humor lighted up his life for all. The only brighter light was his wonderful marriage to Robin Lowey.

In addition to his wife, Tom leaves a brother, Paul Wilfinger, sisters Karen Wernicke, Joan Wilfinger, and Lynn Tokelson, cousin Michael Weldon, and 5 nieces and nephews and many friends who loved him dearly.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend Tom's visitation on Thursday, September 3, 2026, 8:30 to 10:00 AM at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 642 Market St., Camden, NJ 08102. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM. Interment private.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Tom's name to The Caplan Caring Difference Fund at the Penn Memory Center. Your donation will directly support programs that provide free caregiver support services to people caring for a loved one with dementia. Donations can be made by clicking on this link: https://giving.apps.upenn.edu/fund?program=MED&fund=603924&bhcp=1 or by mailing a check to: Penn Medicine Development, Attn: Penn Memory Center, Caring Difference Fund, 3535 Market Street, Suite 750, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

Arrangements by the FOSTER-WARNE FUNERAL HOME, Collingswood and Audubon, NJ.