Native Islander and Meals on Wheels president secured grants for many community initiatives; enjoyed family time down the shore
Loretta McGinn (née Byrne) passed away peacefully on Oct. 8, 2019, in Westerleigh.
Loretta was the beloved wife of Thomas A. McGinn (deceased) and the loving mother of Thomas A. J. (Eileen) McGinn, Consuelo McGinn (Tony Fontaino), Marianne (Kevin) Byrne, Julia (Army) Gaetano, and Laura McGinn (David Leichtman). She leaves behind 10 grandchildren, Anthony, Tommy, Amanda, Jillian, Theresa, Elizabeth, Aine, Eile, Megan, and Brian, and a great-grand-daughter, Cleo.
Loretta, a native Islander, was a graduate of Blessed Sacrament School in West Brighton and St. Peter's High School for Girls in New Brighton. She received her B.A. in psychology (cum laude) from the College of Staten Island (CSI) in 1979 and her master's in social work from Rutgers University in 1989. Notably, Loretta earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees while working full time, raising five children and maintaining the family home. She devoted her life and her work to making her community a better place.
In 1982, she began as a program assistant in a then-pilot program named Serve and Enrich Retirement through Volunteer Experience (SERVE), which made available to the community the talents and experience of senior citizens as never before. Just over a year later she became its director, overseeing the activities of over 1,200 retirees in hospitals, senior centers, nursing homes, community centers, and elsewhere at over 70 locations on Staten Island. Loretta introduced several new programs, including the first in NYC to provide food for homebound AIDS patients.
In 1990, Loretta was selected from a field of 160 candidates to direct Meals on Wheels on Staten Island. She served as president, a post she held until her retirement nearly two decades later. She expanded the number of recipients (to over 500) as well as the scope of the program to include not just the delivery of meals, but their preparation (after she led the drive to build its own kitchen), as well as advice on nutrition. Over 250 volunteers were involved in the effort.
Among her many awards was her induction into CSI's Hall of Fame, as well as recognition from local, city and state government offices for her efforts on behalf of her community. She was also active in the Staten Island United Way Executives (past president), the Staten Island Interagency Council on Aging (past president), The Rotary Club of Staten Island, CSI's Options Advisory Board, and Staten Island Cares (an AIDS support group).
Loretta wrote proposals and secured grants for several key community initiatives involving seniors, including a program to train senior volunteers to become advocates for other seniors in securing benefits/entitlements, as well as a program aimed to reduce community ethnic and racial tensions through the work of trained senior volunteers in elementary schools.
Loretta was an avid reader who enjoyed creating art, walking, baking and spending time with family, particularly down the shore.
Loretta is also survived by her brother, Francis A. Byrne, and her many nieces and nephews.
Visiting is 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13, and Monday, Oct. 14, at Harmon Funeral Home. The Funeral Mass is Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 10 a.m., at Blessed Sacrament Church, 30 Manor Rd., Staten Island. Burial follows at St. Peter Cemetery, Staten Island.
Harmon Funeral Home
571 Forest Ave.
Staten Island, N.Y. 10310
(718) 442-5056
Published in Staten Island Advance on Oct. 11, 2019
IRISH BLESSING
May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in
the hollow of His hand.
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