Each year the oldest Irish society in the Americas, the Charitable Irish Society of Boston honors individuals who exemplifies the best of Irish culture and ideals. On the occasion of their 16th Silver Key Awards the society will honor Rev. Gerald Osterman, Immaculate Conception Parish, Richard Campbell, Campbell Trial Lawyers and Richard Gormley, Gormley Funeral Home for their contributions to the Irish community in Massachusetts.
Rev. Gerald Osterman
Rev. Gerald Osterman, a native of Boston , was raised in Hingham and entered the seminary in 1959 before being ordained into the priesthood in June, 1967.
He has served parishes in Wayland (St. Ann); Quincy (St. Boniface); Dorchester (St. John-St. Hugh); and currently is based at the Immaculate Conception in Everett. He also spends time at St. John-St. Hugh, now renamed St. Katharine Drexel, having combined St. John-St. Hugh with St.Francis de Sales, Roxbury.
Revered Osterman co- founded the St. Boniface Haiti Foundation with Nannette Canniff in 1983 and in 1993 help set up the Mother Caroline Academy & Education Center based in Dorchester.
This center is a school for girls, grades 4-8, whose parents are often immigrants seeking a good education for their children without the means to do so. The mission of the school is to provide a high quality education that develops the individual gifts of each student and prepares her for success in
competitive secondary schools and college.The high school graduation rate is 100% and college graduation rate is 75%, far above the nationwide average for low income families of 55% for high school and 10% for college.
Richard Campbell
Since founding Campbell Trial Lawyers in 1983, Richard Campbell has been a driving force in the growth and increasing prominence of the firm as a Tier 1 national trial firm.
Dick Campbell primarily represents national and international corporations in complex cases, including multi-district litigation, class actions, aviation, toxic tort and products liability disputes. He also represents clients in commercial disputes, including contests over the control of closely held corporations. He is one of seven national trial counsel for Caterpillar Inc., and, in August 2009, after five years of contentious litigation, concluded a nationally certified class action with decertification of the class, an involuntary dismissal with prejudice and an assessment of costs against the class representative.
Dick Campbell is lead counsel for one of the commercial airlines in the litigation now pending in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit arising out of the terrorist attacks of September 11th. United States District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein appointed him to the Aviation Defendants’ Executive Committee ("ADEC") as Representative of the “Non-Carrier” Airlines Group. Under the leadership of its Liaison Counsel, Desmond T. Barry, Jr., the ADEC was responsible for coordinating the overall management of the procedural aspects of the litigation.
Dick is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyer, the sine qua non of achievement and respect for a trial lawyer in the United States. He is a Past President of the Massachusetts Bar Association and the Founding Chair of the Board of Overseers at Boston College Law School. He was awarded Boston College Law School’s highest honor, the Founders Medal, for his devotion to and accomplishments in the law. He serves as Trustee of the five campus, 72,000 student University of Massachusetts and is a member of the UMass Building Authority. At its May, 2014 commencement, the University of Massachusetts Boston conferred upon him its Chancellor’s Medal for Distinguished Service on behalf of its students and commitment to public higher education. Richard Campbell recently served on the ABA’s Task Force on Legal Education.
Featured in Boston Magazine, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and the Boston Business Journal, Dick is also a frequent resource for television and radio programs on topics such as litigation, social host liability and the law.
Richard F. Gormley
Richie Gormley has been a public fixture in the West Roxbury area for many years. As owner and operator of the Gormley Funeral Home in West Roxbury, Richie has made substantial contributions to the community and the heritage he loves.
He served in the 1st Marine Division in Da Nang, Viet Nam where he was awarded the “ Cross of Gallantry” for combat action. After returning from Viet Nam, Richie attended the New England Institute of Anatomy where he obtained his Funeral Director and Embalmer License. He is a member of the Massachusetts Funeral Directors Assoc., National Funeral Directors Assoc., and the Irish Assoc. of Funeral Directors.
Richie has been a member of several organizations throughout the years. He has served as an elected Commander of the V.F.W. Post # 2902, a member of the Fogg Roberts American Legion Post #78, Silver Star D.A.V., Ancient and Honorable Artillery Co. of MA, B.P.O.E. #10, Knights of Columbus #3049, Irish Holy Ghost Committee, St. Theresa’ Usher Club, St. Vincent de Paul Society and the Co. Leitrim Society. He has also been a past President of the Co. Roscommon Assoc. of Boston. As a member and former Director of the Irish Cultural Center, he voted to obtain the Center’s current location in Canton. He organized and flew on the first historic air flight from Boston to Knock airport Co. Mayo Ireland, with the approval of the Dept. of Transportation. He has also been a Director of the Roxbury-Highland Bank for over 20 years and served on their finance committee. He has sponsored numerous athletic teams including the Tigers of the Parkway Little League and the Gormley Club of the Parkway Soccer League.
In 2003, the Parkway Soccer League named him Man of The Year. In 2004, he was named Citizen of The Year, by the Boston Lodge of Elks, and in 2005 he was named Person of The Year by the Boston Police Emerald Society. In 2012, he was elected Mayor of West Roxbury.
Tickets can be ordered from Silver Key chairperson Sandra Moody at 617- 315-7883. For more see charitableirishsociety.org.
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