Thanks to the generous gift of $25,000 by Vincent Mariano’41, the Recapture The Dream Capital Campaign has reached the half way point of its million dollar goal.

Vincent “Vinnie” Mariano is a graduate of the Saint Mary High School Class of 1941.

In the early years of Saint Mary they had a boxing club, Vincent had two bouts and won them both. He was also on the bowling team, camera club, Sodality, and a member of the student council.

Vincent served honorably in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was stationed in the Pacific. Upon his discharge he attended Providence College (another Catholic institution) and graduated in 1950. He married Louise Lennox of Rutherford in 1948 and together they had seven children. Janet ’68, David ’70 and Richard ’72 graduated from Saint Mary. Danny graduated from Lyndhurst High School and Joanne, Vinnie, Jr. and Joy graduated from Rutherford High School.

After living in Lyndhurst for 11 years, the Mariano family moved back to Rutherford in 1966.

Vincent Mariano has long been a generous contributor to Saint Mary. He has said on many occasions, “I never want to see a child deprived of a Catholic education due to lack of money.” Through Vinnie’s generosity and benevolence many young men and women have received the financial assistance needed to get that Catholic education.

The genesis of this belief goes back to Vincent’s childhood. His parents, Bridget Moran, born and raised in Rutherford, and his father Michael, a very successful builder, lost almost everything they had during the depression. It was members of Saint Mary Parish that came to the aid of the Mariano family and provided Vincent, his two brothers and two sisters with a Catholic education. Vinnie has never forgotten that.

Vinnie’s very successful business career spanned over 50 years as an Insurance Professional with Allstate Insurance Co. He parlayed that success into his own agency in 1981. He retired and sold his agency in 1992.

A past treasurer of Saint Mary Alumni Association and an organizing member of the school’s 50th Anniversary Committee and the Thomas Diffily Scholarship, to this day Vinnie continues to support Saint Mary. He is one of several Alumni that stepped forward after hearing of the Capital Campaign and said he wanted to participate as one of the “Campaign Challengers”. This select group has pooled their monies for the purpose of a Campaign Challenge that will match each and every alumni contribution, dollar for dollar.

(Left To Right) Fr. Michael Kreder, Pastor, Dennis Letsche, Chairperson of the Recapture the Dream Capital Campaign, Vincent Mariano, Dr. Robert Berckes