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Bequest
Benefits Seton Catholic High School
Members
of the Loughney family join with
students, alumni and clergy at the
announcement of the The Janet R. and
Marion J. Loughney Scholarship Fund,
which will benefit Seton Catholic
High School in Pittston. Front row
from left: Father Daniel Schwebs,
OSJ; James Redington, principal;
Mary Reardon Mundenar, SJ’69;
Father Thomas Maloney, president of
the Board of Pastors; and Msgr. John
Bendik. Back row: Erin Lennon Berlew,
Grace Berlew, Gerald Loughney, SJ’46,
Bernadine Grabowski Loughney, PCC’55,
Joseph Loftus, SJ’67, and
Anne Loftus Monahan, SJ’60.
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Seton Catholic High School in Pittston has
received a $239,000 bequest that
will provide financial assistance
for students and their families.
The gift from the estate of Marion J. Loughney
will establish The Janet R. and
Marion J. Loughney Scholarship Fund.
The bequest was announced at the conclusion of a
liturgy celebrated in honor of the
Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
St. Joseph Oblate Father Daniel L.
Schwebs, pastor of St. Anthony of
Padua Church, Exeter, was the
principal celebrant and homilist.
Members of the Seton Catholic Board
of Pastors assisted him.
Father Thomas J. Maloney, pastor of Blessed
Sacrament Church, Hughestown, and
president of the Board, expressed
the gratitude of the Seton Catholic
community. |
“The Loughneys’ gift is a sign of the
commitment of our alumni to the continuance
of Catholic secondary education in
Pittston,” he said. “Seton Catholic High
School is part of a 140-year tradition of
secondary education, centered in values of
faith and service to Church, our local
community and the world.”
Brian Simko, vice-president of the Student
Council, spoke on behalf of the student
community. “Seton Catholic High School has
been an important part of my development as
a young man of faith and integrity. I am
happy to know that those who walked the
halls of St. John’s, Pittston Central
Catholic and Seton Catholic are still aware
of and grateful for the lessons taught and
learned in our classrooms.”
Janet and Marion Loughney were born and raised in
Pittston. They were the daughters of William
and Genevieve Reardon Loughney. Both sisters
were active members of St. John the
Evangelist Parish.
Marion was a member of St. John High School’s
Class of 1936. Upon graduation, she attended
the Wyoming Seminary Business School and
then began working in the office of the
Pagnotti Coal Company. After many years, she
left to work as secretary and later as an
administrative assistant to Luzerne County
Judge Bernard C. Brominski before retiring
in 1982.
Janet graduated from St. John’s in 1939. She
attended the Mercy Hospital School of
Nursing, Wilkes-Barre, and became a
registered nurse. She later received a
degree in anesthesiology from St. Francis
Hospital, Pittsburgh, and worked at Mercy
Hospital, Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, and
the Veterans Administration Hospital. In
1976 she was named chief anesthetist at the
VA and remained in that position until her
retirement in 1986.
According to those who knew them, these women were
devoted to their faith and very generously
and quietly helped others throughout their
lives. They were described as “angels
among us.”
“The Loughney gift to Seton Catholic is a
testimony to their strong conviction and
commitment to Catholic education,” said
the school’s principal, James J. Redington.
“This scholarship, which will benefit our
students and families, speaks volumes of
affirmation for the value and worth of Seton
Catholic High School. The generosity of
these faith-filled women is inspirational to
us all. I am honored to have known both
Marion and Janet Loughney. They will forever
be in my prayerful gratitude.”
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