Honoring Excellence: The Frank J. O’Hara Alumni Awards
Over the years, Reunion Weekend has become many things to many people. For most, it’s a chance to make new memories with old friends; for some, it’s an opportunity to reconnect with the positive energy the campus radiates thanks to Scranton’s pursuit of
The Alumni Society and the University established the Frank J. O’Hara Distinguished Alumni Award in 1981 as the highest recognition they jointly bestow to honor the memory of Frank J. O’Hara, an administrator who served the University for more than 53 years. Honorees are selected based on the nominees’ commitment to Ignatian values and their pursuit of professional and personal excellence. In 2015, they established the Frank J. O’Hara Recent Graduate Award to recognize alumni who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to service for others in their personal or professional achievements while embodying Scranton’s Catholic and Jesuit values within 10 years of their graduation date.
At this year’s O’Hara Awards Ceremony, The Alumni Society and the University honored the following alumni:
Cario, Egypt
Andrew W. Mellon/HUSSLab Post-MA Research Fellow, The American University in Cairo
“We, ourselves, as Jesuit-educated, must live greater so our fellow brothers and sisters can live the lives that they feel they are called to live but are unable to do so. Only then will we bring back harmony to the world. Only then will everyone be able to see God in all things. Only then can we live the greatest and make the
Clarks Summit
Attorney
“The O’Hara Award is a very prestigious award, and it is to be cherished when someone is selected to receive it. But for myself and my family, it is something more: It is a special reminder, with gratitude, of how my family over three generations got here, and so it will always have a special place in the lore of the Appleton Family.”
William J. Brady ’83, P’12
Wellesley, Massachusetts
Sustainability-focused Executive, Entrepreneur
“I remember distinctly the feeling I had that day when I walked onto this campus (for the first time), the feeling of belonging, the feeling of community, and it’s the same feeling I had when I came back here and walked on the campus today.”
Francis J. Pearn ’83, P’16
Garden City, New York Chief
Compliance Officer, JPMorgan Chase & Co
“(The University of Scranton) is a fantastic institution. I’m so glad so many people are back to see it. It’s really been transformed since our days here on Linden Street.”
COL James F. Cummings, M.D., FACP, FIDSA, FASTMH, U.S. Army (ret) '88, H' 15
Chevy Chase, Maryland
President, ICON Government and Public Health Solutions, Inc.
"The Idea of being a man for others—that fire burns deep and has continued throughout my career"
Dominique Ponzio Bernardo ’93
Bridgeport
CFO, Congreso de Latinos Unidos, North Philadelphia
“Please, please, find a cause that is meaningful to you, be it
Michele Giancatarino Gilfillan ’98
Bloomfield, New Jersey
Director, Foundations and Corporate Engagement, Catholic Relief Services
“What more can I do? What more can we do to manifest God’s love? We are a community, a community that has
Matthew R. Bernard ’99, G’03
Clarks Green
Director of Counseling & Campus Ministry / Social Studies Teacher, Scranton Preparatory School
"Let us tonight be grateful not only for The University of Scranton but also for Jesuit education and the opportunity for us to be pushed beyond our comfort zones and to be loved.”
