James O’Brien

Now serving as Vice Chairman of Kensington Investment Company and Grand Circle Corporation, Jim joined the company in February 1995 after retiring as Chairman of Boston-based General Investment + Development Company (GID). He joined GID as an Apartment Manager in February 1967 and remained with the firm for 27 years, becoming President & Chief Operating Officer in 1976, CEO in 1981, and Chairman in 1989. He retired from GID in December 1993. Jim also served on the Board of Directors of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board from 1980 through 1986, and served as President of the Rental Housing Association of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board in 1981 and 1982. Jim currently serves on the Board of Advisors for Kensington Investment Company, Grand Circle Corporation, and the Lewis Family Foundation. Jim graduated from the USMA West Point, NY, in 1959 with a bachelor’s degree in Engineering. He served in the U.S. Army Infantry Branch, resigning in October 1965. He held various Troop leadership positions and was a graduate of the Airborne and Ranger Schools in 1959. He was an advisor to a RVN Infantry Battalion in the Vietnam conflict in 1964 and 1965. Joined the company: 1995 “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.”  — Winston Churchill