Kevin J. Dillon Memorial Scholarship

Dear Saint Mary’s Family and Friends,

 

On behalf of the Dillon family, I am writing to share with you a special initiative close to my heart, which I am sure all of you will welcome.

 

With the passing of our beloved brother, Kevin, the Dillon family has lost not only a beloved sibling but a true friend, a source of steadfast good counsel and a wonderful exemplar of unflagging generosity. As everyone who had the benefit of being with him over the years knows, Kevin gave of himself unstintingly. No one personified fidelity to God’s greatest commandments better than Kevin. He loved God with all his heart and all his mind and all his soul; and he loved his neighbor as he loved himself. For 40 years, he was an inspired and inspiring educator – teaching for 30 years at St. Mary’s in Manhasset and 10 years at Cathedral Prep Seminary in Manhattan. His legacy of Christian dedication and Christian gentleness lives on in the many students he instructed and guided over the years and in the colleagues whose lives he enriched. Always ready to assist at athletic events and school dances – he ran the water station! – Kevin was always ready to volunteer to serve the common good. He was also an admirable man of prayer whose personal influence touched and transformed the lives of generations of students.

 

Those same students will never forget the “packets” that Kevin set them to complete. They would often complain about how demanding they were. Yet his students would always return from college full of heartfelt thanks to Mr. Dillon for instilling in them not only their love of learning but their readiness to work hard to develop and refine that love. They knew that his insistence on good order, being thoroughly prepared and meeting deadlines enabled them to succeed in college and beyond college.

 

In light of Kevin’s splendid educational work, it is only fitting that my siblings and I should establish a memorial scholarship in his honor to offer future students the same lifelong educational benefits that he bestowed on so many students when he taught at Saint Mary’s.

 

By offering scholarships to young men and women who need monetary assistance in order to enroll in and benefit from Saint Mary’s, the fund will commemorate not only my dear brother’s commitment to learning but his great spirit of generosity and love, which, I am sure, all of you remember fondly. Accordingly, I ask every member of the Saint Mary community, parents and parishioners, former students and colleagues of Kevin, to consider making a gift to this special fund in memory of him and his superb educational legacy. All contributions will be used solely for scholarships for qualified Saint Mary students who need financial assistance to pay for tuition.

Thank you for your kind consideration.

 

Very truly yours,

Thomas Dillon