Mayor Thomas M. Menino 1942-2014

Mayor Thomas M. Menino 1942-2014

Mayor Thomas M. Menino presided over an expanding Boston skyline during his 20 years in office. (Erik Jacobs for the Boston Globe )

Celebrating his birthday party in 1996 at the arena known then as the FleetCenter, Menino got a cake from actors playing Pocahontas and John Smith. (Janet Knott/Globe Staff)

Menino stood with other dignitaries at the 30th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast in 2000. During Menino’s time as mayor, Boston grew increasingly diverse, and by the time he left office, people of color constituted a majority of the city’s population. (Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff )

Menino and his wife, Angela, appeared with Acting Governor Jane Swift a day after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks for a Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.

Menino won five races for mayor -- more than anyone in the city’s history -- including in 2001, when he celebrated his victory with wife, Angela, at the Copley Fairmont Hotel. (Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff)

A Latin mariachi group led Menino from the boathouse to the beach of Jamaica Pond for the annual release of the swans. . (Dominic Chavez/Globe Staff)

Menino arrived at a surprise 60th birthday party held by family and friends at Joseph's Restaurant on High Street in 2002. (Bill Brett/Globe Staff)

Menino was renowned for never missing a ribbon cutting, but few proved more consequential than the 2003 ceremonial opening of the I-90 extension, part of the Big Dig. (David L. Ryan/Globe Staff)

Menino got a standing ovation from parents, teachers, and students on graduation day at Our Lady of the Presentation School. The Oak Square school was closed by the Boston Catholic Archdiocese in 2005, a decision that sparked tensions between Menino, a devout Catholic, and Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley. (David L. Ryan/Globe Staff)

Menino threw a football around at the Boys & Girls Club of Boston Blue Hill Clubhouse in 2005. (Dominic Chavez,/Globe Staff)

During the 20 years Menino spent as mayor, some of his most heart-rending moments were spent comforting the families of children who had been shot. Kai Leigh Harriot survived a shooting and spoke in 2006, the mayor watching. ( David L. Ryan/ Globe Staff)

Long-time South Boston Councilman James M. Kelly embraced Menino at a 2006 event to dedicate a playground in Kelly’s name outside St. Peter's Academy. (George Rizer/Globe Staff)

Menino spoke to Cheyenne Isaac, 7, after touring a house that her family bought from the city for $100. (Evan Richman/ Globe Staff)

From left, Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray, Boston Police Officer Albert Goslin, Governor Deval Patrick, Police Commissioner Ed Davis, and Menino walked to a press conference in 2006.. ( Dominic Chavez/Globe Staff)

Menino appeared with actress/singer Nancy Anderson at a 2007 event. (Bill Brett/Globe staff)

The rebirth of the South Boston waterfront was among Menino’s signal accomplishments, converting wind-buffeted parking lots into office buildings, condos, and nightspots. In 2007, he helped break ground for the Fan Pier project. (David L. Ryan/Globe Staff)

Menino peered from a window of a triple decker being refurbished on Hendry Street, in an area of Dorchester that was a a focus of the mayor’s revitalization efforts. (John Tlumacki/Globe Staff)

Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley spoke with Menino at an event focused on the Youth Services and Teen Center at St. Peter Parish. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)

Menino hit the streets as he sought re-election in 2009, stopping in Roxbury to speak with community leader Sarah-Ann Shaw. It would be his last run for mayor. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)

Menino spoke with Edrei Olivero, 7, of Mattapan, before a neighborhood walk in 2010. (Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff)

Menino has a few words with tenant activist Ruth Barkley. He announced groundbreakings for four Boston Housing Authority developments made possible through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)

Menino and his wife, Angela made a 2012 trip to the Red Sox spring training facility at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Fla. (Jim Davis/Globe Staff)

Menino made what would be his final major address to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce in December 2013, just weeks before Martin J. Walsh succeeded him as mayor. (Yoon S. Byun/Globe Staff)

As the end of Menino’s 20-year run as mayor of Boston approached, the applause grew louder and longer as he attended events across the city. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff)