Msgr. George Casey

Monsignor George T. Casey, Pastor Emeritus of Saint John Bosco Church, Conyngham, and a resident at Willow Manor Residential Home, Dania Beach, Fla., died Aug. 18, 2005, after an illness.
Monsignor Casey, son of the late John and Mary O’Boyle Casey, was born May 15, 1912. He attended elementary and high school in Pittston and Jersey City, N.J., and earned a bachelor of arts degree from Saint Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, Md., in 1933. He also attended the University of Maryland, and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff Extension School of Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He received his MBA from Syracuse University in 1960.
Monsignor Casey was ordained to the priesthood on May 22, 1937, in Saint Peter’s Cathedral, Scranton, by the Most Reverend Bernard J. Mahoney, D.D., Bishop of Sioux Falls, S.D.
Monsignor Casey entered the military service late in 1944, and went to the South Pacific in 1945, where he served as troop chaplain with the 25th Infantry Division until 1947. He was appointed division chaplain in August 1946. He left the service in 1947 but was recalled in December 1950 for the Korean Conflict. He went to Korea in 1951 and served with the combat troops in the Central Sector.
From 1952 to 1956 Monsignor Casey was post chaplain at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. He was then sent to the Second Army Chaplain’s office at Fort Mead from 1957 to 1959.
Monsignor Casey held the following positions, Chaplain of Joint Task force 7 at Eniwetok for the atomic and hydrogen bomb test series in 1956-1957; attendance at the U.S. Army Comptrollership School at Syracuse University in 1959-1960; reassignment to Chaplain Division, HQ, Europe, Chief of Plans and Operations, 1960-1963.
Monsignor Casey returned to the United States in November 1963 as director, administration and management, Comptroller, U.S. Army Chaplain School. He reported to the office of the Chief of Chaplains in March 1966, and was appointed director, Plans, Programs and Policies in July 1966. In May 1969 he was reassigned to the U.S. Army Chaplain Board and appointed president of the Board of the Chief of Chaplains at the Pentagon.
Monsignor Casey retired from military service in 1971 with the rank of Colonel. Prior to and between World War II and the Korean conflict, Monsignor Casey served in several parishes in the Diocese of Scranton, including seven years at St. Ann’s in Freeland. He served as assistant pastor at Nativity of the BVM in Tunkhannock, St. Mary’s in Avoca, Our Lady Queen of Peace in Hawley, and Nativity of Our Lord in Scranton. Monsignor Casey was assigned pastor of Saint John Bosco Church, Conyngham, on September 7, 1971, where he served until his retirement on Sept. 9, 1982.
In 1961, Francis Cardinal Spellman of New York appointed Monsignor Casey assistant military vicar with the powers of a Vicar General in the Military Diocese of Europe. He was honored by Pope John XXIII in 1962, when he was made a domestic prelate with the title of Rt. Rev. Monsignor. He was invested by Cardinal Spellman during a Christmas visit to the troops in Europe.
Monsignor Casey’s chief work in Europe was as director of the Catholic military program for the armed forces and as moderator of the Military Council of Catholic Men and Women.
In 1970, Monsignor Casey was named “Chaplain of the Year” by the Reserve Officers Association of the Armed Forces of the United States. He was awarded the Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster, and received six battle stars for World War II, Korea and the Vietnam War.
Monsignor Casey is survived by a brother, the Reverend John W. Casey, pastor emeritus of Nativity of the BVM Church in Tunkhannock and Our Lady of the Lake, Lake Winola. He is also survived by several nieces, nephews and cousins.
He was preceded in death by two sisters, Mrs. Madlyn McGrail, Scranton, and Mrs. Rita McCabe, Lakewood, New Jersey.
The viewing will take place at Saint John Bosco Church, Conyngham, on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2005, from 2 to 7 p.m. A Vigil Mass will be celebrated at Saint John Bosco Church, Conyngham, at 7 p.m., with the Very Reverend Patrick J. McLaughlin, VF, presiding.
A Pontifical Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated by the Most Reverend Joseph F. Martino, D.D., Hist., E.D., Bishop of Scranton, on Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2005, at 11 a.m. in Saint John the Evangelist Church, Pittston. A viewing will also take place Wednesday morning, prior to the 11 funeral Mass. Interment will be in Saint John the Evangelist Cemetery, Pittston.