John J. Mack

The son of Lebanese immigrants, John Mack, the youngest of six boys, was born in 1944 in Mooresville, North Carolina. Mack's father, who was deeply religious, taught his sons to protect their name, to be honest, to deal fairly with others, to be charitable, and, above all, to be devout.

His mother, who spent 14 years of her youth as a refugee in Cuba, worked for 15 years to make extra money as a landscape designer, flower arranger, and interior designer. Mack describes her as a wise, shrewd woman. "Even though I have failed in my life from time to time, I have never feared failure," he says. "I learned that from my mother."

Together, Mack's parents helped found the first Catholic church in their predominantly Baptist community. "We used to have a priest come from another city to say Mass in our home," he says. "Religion always played a central role in my family. My parents also imbued us with a sense of helping others."

All the Mack boys helped their father with his wholesale grocery business. If they did not have schoolwork, they went up to the store at night to get orders ready for shipment in the morning. Mack began working at the age of eight. Not one to waste time, he was always focused on organizing the work and getting it done as quickly as possible. From the time he was in college, he ran the warehouse each summer.

Getting a good education was a priority in the Mack household. Mack's parents, aware that education was the key to success, required their sons to work hard in school. Mack was a member of the National Honor Society in high school and served as president of the student body during his senior year.

A star football player, Mack received a scholarship to Duke University, where he majored in history. During the school year, he earned extra money selling snacks that he brought from the family store to sell from his dorm room. During his sophomore year, Mack was devastated when his father died suddenly.

The following year, he cracked the vertebrae in his neck and could no longer play football. Without scholarship money, he needed to find a job to finish his education. He worked as a clerk at a securities firm in North Carolina and attended classes during his lunch breaks.

Upon graduation in 1968, Mack was recruited by Morgan Stanley. By 1976, he was a vice president, and two years later was made managing director. From 1985 to 1992, he led the firm's Worldwide Taxable Fixed Income Division. He became a member of the board in 1987. In 1992, he assumed the responsibility of Morgan Stanley's day-to-day operations as chairman of the operating committee. He was named president the following year.

Under his guidance, Morgan Stanley became the only foreign investment bank allowed to do business inside China. Mack steered the company through its 1997 merger with Dean Witter & Co., ending up as president and chief operating officer of the newly combined firm. In 2001, Mack ended his 30-year career with Morgan Stanley to become CEO of Credit Suisse First Boston, the world's fifth largest investment bank.

"Success is personal happiness, having people in your life you can count on and who in turn can count on you," says Mack, who is honored by his Horatio Alger Award. "The Association's scholarship program for deserving youth is especially admirable. I like to work, and I like to help others. This offers a good opportunity to accomplish both."