Centennial Celebration honors Sister Jerome

Staff report

BOARDMAN

Sister Jerome Corcoran, founder of Sister Jerome’s Poor, Millcreek Children’s Center and the Youngstown Community School, will be honored at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 11 at The Georgetown Banquet Center, 5945 South Ave.

The dinner will be a centennial celebration of her life and work.

Sister Jerome’s 100th birthday is in April.

All proceeds will benefit Sister Jerome’s Poor, a tax-exempt nonprofit organization that provides mentoring and financial aid and support to inner-city youth and families.

Sister Jerome has addressed the needs of Mahoning Valley children for more than 70 years. She earned a doctorate from Case Western Reserve University in 1952 and supervised education in the Diocese of Youngstown for 15 years.

In 1976, she founded Millcreek Children’s Center, which she directed 36 years.

In 1998, Sister Jerome, Sister Mary Dunn and Developing Potential Inc. founded a charter school, Youngstown Community School. She led both schools until 2012.

At 96, Sister Jerome established Sister Jerome’s Poor under the auspices of the Ursuline Sisters.

Her mission is to help working poor families in emergencies and help 12 inner-city college students graduate and obtain good jobs.

Her program’s success rate among college students is 84 percent, and in the last year, Sister Jerome’s Poor has helped more than 400 working poor residents of Youngstown.

The dinner is $45 per person. For reservations, call Sister Jerome’s Poor at 330-792-7636. All reservations and contributions are due by Sept. 30.

Benefactors and special gifts will be recognized in the Tribute Book, which soon will go to press. For information regarding the Tribute Book, contact Bernadette at 330-792-6033.

Honorary co-chairmen of the Centennial Celebration are Clarence and Rosemarie Smith, Dr. John C. York and Denise DeBartolo York, the Rev. Morris Lee, Jim and Ellen Tressel, retired state Sen. Harry Meshel, George Beelen, Phil Dennison, Christine Dennison, Patricia Syak, Dee Crawford and Lou Zona.

General co-chairmen are James Pazol, Mark Munroe, Tony Mancino and Donna Bricker.

Sister Jerome’s Poor operates from The Ursuline Center, 4280 Shields Road in Canfield.

In addition to Sister Jerome, the Advisory Committee for Sister Jerome’s Poor consists of Bricker, James Colella, Sister Nancy Dawson, Sister Mary Dunn, Charles T. George, Joseph T. Joseph, Tony Mancino, Sister Mary McCormick, Munroe, James L. Pazol, Gerald A. Peskin, Clarence R. Smith, Gere Weller and Joan Yanchick.