Honey and Jack O’ Leary... Where do
we begin to sing their praises?
Whenever anyone mentions their names, the reaction is the same:
a big smile! When we think of Honey and Jack, we think of service,
compassion, and “love for the dear neighbor without distinction.”
When they came to work at Carondelet and De La Salle, Honey
and Jack both brought masters' degrees along with many years of
teaching experience. They also had a loving relationship which
they felt was the most significant support for their classroom
ministry. Honey (whose real name is Cecilia) had taught in junior
high and high schools in the Albany area of New York State for
10 years, while Jack taught in Brooklyn, East Africa, and Long
Island. Primarily an English teacher, Jack began teaching at De La
Salle in 1971 and, in 1977, Honey was hired to teach Religious
Studies at Carondelet.
Honey retired in 2001 but returned that September as a substitute
teacher. In March, 2008, she began working as a replacement for the
Community Service Department, expanding it into a national model
of excellence. She retired again in June, 2012. In 2009, after many years
of inspiring students at De La Salle, Jack came to the Carondelet side
of Winton as a long-term sub, and then stayed on as substitute teacher.
But he has been so much more. Through his humor and gentleness,
Jack was an inspiration to the students of Carondelet.
Dedication is often more than doing things. It’s being there. Staunch
supporters of Carondelet student activities, Honey and Jack have
attended games, Company productions, and class reunions—too
many to count. And whenever someone is out in public with one or
both of them, a former student is certain to app ɽ