Peter Connolly, age 66, born to Peter Connolly and Audrey Emerson, August 4, 1956, departed this life Thursday, August 25, 2022.  Peter attended Boston College where he met the "love of his life," Susan Dow Connolly.  They had been married 42 years at the time of his death.

Peter had an illustrious, varied career of 30+ years marketing experience.  In 1978, he was employed by Macy's and worked in the warehouse in Middle Village Queens before becoming the youngest store manager of Macy's Smith Haven.  Peter was Store Manager of IKEA Elizabeth, overseeing the building and start-up of the store for its grand opening in 1990.  IKEA received tremendous media attention attributed to successful marketing and advertising campaigns that Peter initiated.

His subsequent employment included being hired by Roger Ailes as Senior VP at CNBC and by Ralph Lauren as Senior Vice President-Polo Ralph Lauren.  He worked for Tommy Hilfiger and was President of Global Marketing where he won numerous awards and produced the 2005 TV Series, "The Cut," featuring Tommy Hilfiger and also developed/produced the "Concert of the Century," a Tommy Hilfiger-sponsored prime time special that was aired from the White House lawn with President Clinton.  Peter also was the Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer for St. Peter's Healthcare System, New Brunswick, N.J. and he was a part-time adjunct professor at Rutgers University Graduate School of Management.

Peter won numerous awards for his ads and commercials. He was named one of the top 100 advertising executives in the United States by Advertising Age, named one of the top marketing experts in the world by Entrepreneur Magazine and he was inducted into the Marketing Hall of Fame.

Peter was a giving person and demonstrated it in so many subtle ways.  He shared his time, his knowledge, his experience and his resources.  Mentoring was something he believed in and there are many individuals whose success is attributed to his influence.

He enjoyed history, politics and college football.  He followed college football closely and attended many games and professional sporting events in his lifetime.

Peter's memory will be cherished forever by his loving wife, Susan Connolly, daughter, Jacqueline Connolly and son, Thomas Connolly.