Extension magazine - Spring 2023

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Extension | Spring 2023 45
In November 2022 Loretta
Brennan Glucksman
received Catholic Extension’s
Spirit of Francis
Award, which recognizes an
individual or group that has
significantly impacted the mission
of the Catholic Church in America
through service or philanthropy.
Brennan Glucksman’s three
decades of philanthropic work is
extensive, focusing on education,
the arts, health care and peace initiatives
in both the United States
and Ireland.
She supports Catholic Extension’s
mission to help the Catholic
Church do the same for those living
on the margins today.
Although her impact is
far-reaching, her motives are simple.
She knows that faith sustained
and uplifted her family, even
when their possessions amounted
to next to nothing.
The Spirit of Francis Award
was presented to her by Catholic
Extension’s president, Father Jack
Wall, at a dinner in New York City.
Father Wall told her, “You, Loretta,
have chosen to live your life as a
gift, as a blessing to others. And
Catholic Extension is honored
tonight to acknowledge you as a
beautiful expression of the very
spirit of Francis among us.”
The award dinner proceeds
benefited women religious serving
communities in the poorest
regions of the United States. That
evening, 70 Catholic sisters stood
up and sang to the guests. Their
song reflected the beauty and
warmth of their presence among
the communities that they serve.
“Those nuns are heroes,” Brennan
Glucksman said. “They are
A life lived as a gift
Granddaughter of Irish immigrants
honored for decades of philanthropy
in Ireland and America
BELOW Father Jack Wall, president of Catholic Extension, presents Loretta Brennan Glucksman
with the Spirit of Francis Award.
at the cutting edge of what will
or won’t be our advancing and
improving civilization as we go
forward.”
Both sets of Brennan Glucksman’s
grandparents emigrated
from Ireland. They came to the
United States under similar circumstances
as today’s immigrant
families. They sought safety and
opportunities for their children.
Humble beginnings
Brennan Glucksman grew up
in Allentown in eastern Pennsylvania.
Catholic Extension supported
faith communities in this
region in the first half of the 20th
century. Her maternal grandfather
was a miner in Leitrim, Ireland,
and continued the profession
in the Pennsylvania coal
mines. Her father was a mail
carrier.
“Both sets of my grandparents
had such an interesting outlook,”
she said. “They had been through
so much turmoil. And they were
intrinsically happy. I was always
so impressed with that ability to
be so appreciative. I always found
that very instructive and very
humbling. It was good grounding
for me.”
She was also inspired by her
namesake and her beloved aunt,
Sister Alice Loretta of the Sisters
of St. Joseph. “She was a wonderful
influence on me,” she said.
“She always talked about how
crucial missionaries were to the
work of the whole Church.”
Brennan Glucksman said her
family kept her strong in the
midst of great challenges in her
childhood. She was born with a
“bad leg,” she described. They
Loretta Brennan Glucksman was honored alongside Catholic sisters who are supported by
Catholic Extension in their work serving communities in the poorest regions of the United States.
finally found a doctor that could
help her. She underwent, she
believes, a total of nine operations.
She said her mother prayed novenas
for the doctors until she died.
“That was hope. Not in the face
of easy things, but a hope based
so firmly on faith,” she said. She
sees a similarity in the Catholic
sisters and their work. “They live
hope. That’s what I like to think I
live too.”
Crucial work in Ireland and
America
Brennan Glucksman’s early
career reflects her later charitable
work. She was a teacher in an elementary
school, a university lecturer
in English literature, a television
producer and an on-air host
for news and public affairs with
PBS. She has three children.
In 1987 she went to Ireland
with her late husband, Lewis
Glucksman, for the first time. She
fell in love with the island and
its people. Together they established
numerous educational and
artistic programs and organizations
at universities in the United
States and Ireland. She also served
as chairman of The Ireland Funds
America for more than 20 years,
and she has led the St. Patrick’s
Day parade in New York City as its
grand marshal.
“The Irish are priests and nuns
in places where we need them. The
Irish are captains of industry and
finance. They’re very popular in
show business. They’re just good,
interesting, usually funny people,”
she said with a smile.
She began championing the
mission of Catholic Extension
when she met Father Wall.
“She knew what it was to listen
to the very heart of people—
to the core of them,” said Father
Wall. “She listened to that story
and identified it with some of her
own experiences. She was able to
create powerful bridge-building
between the United States and Ireland.
She knew that story, and the
story that’s going on in our country
is very much symbiotic.”
“This award means a great deal
to me, as I appreciate the breadth
and depth of Catholic Extension’s
work so much. As our world gets
more and more chaotic, the work
of Catholic Extension and helping
others in need becomes even more
crucial,” Brennan Glucksman said.
“Stay with Catholic Extension. It
does make a difference.”