Early Life, Education, and Early Career
Toomey was born in Providence, Rhode Island, the son of Mary Ann (née Andrews) and Patrick Joseph Toomey. He was raised by Catholic parents, and was the third of six children. His father was a union worker who laid cable for Narragansett Electric Company, and his mother worked as a part-time secretary at St. Martha's, a Catholic church. Toomey was a member of the Boy Scouts of America and attained the organization's highest rank, Eagle Scout. His father was of Irish descent and his mother was of Portuguese ancestry (all of his maternal great-grandparents had been born in the Azores).
Toomey attended La Salle Academy on scholarship and graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. in government.
Toomey was hired by Chemical Bank in 1984, where he was involved in currency swap transactions. In 1986, Toomey was hired by Morgan, Grenfell & Co., where he dealt in multiple foreign currencies, interest rates, and currency-related derivatives. In 1991, Toomey resigned from the firm when it was acquired by Deutsche Bank in order to avoid the decreased flexibility and entrepreneurship that the acquisition would have caused. The same year, Toomey and two younger brothers, Steven and Michael, opened Rookie's Restaurant in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
In 1994, at 32, Toomey was elected to Allentown's newly established Government Study Commission. During his term, Toomey drafted a new charter for the Commission requiring a super-majority for any tax increase. The charter was approved by Allentown voters on April 23, 1996.
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