[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 83 (Thursday, June 9, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3677-S3678]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                     REMEMBERING JAMES J. HAGGERTY

 Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute to the 
late James J. Haggerty of Dunmore, PA. Jim was my good friend and on 
Sunday, June 12, he would have celebrated his 75th birthday. He died 
this past February 8.
  Jim and his wife Celia were married for 40 years and they were the 
parents of seven loving children: Jean, Mauri, James, Matthew, Cecelia, 
Daniel and Kathleen.
  Jim was raised in Dunmore and graduated from Scranton Preparatory 
School. After graduating from the College of the Holy Cross in 1957, 
Jim graduated with honors from Georgetown Law School. He returned home 
to northeastern Pennsylvania to become the first law clerk to U.S. 
District Court Judge William J. Nealon. Jim's passion for public 
service led him to run for Congress in 1964 and State senate in 1966. 
While he was not successful in those campaigns, Jim was undeterred in 
his efforts to serve the people of Pennsylvania. For the next 40 years, 
he was a close friend and an ever-faithful supporter of my father 
Robert P. Casey and me in all of our campaigns for public office in 
Pennsylvania. Jim was a brilliant lawyer and he had a very successful 
law practice in Scranton for many years.
  When my father was elected Governor in 1986, Jim came to Harrisburg 
to serve the people, first as secretary of the Commonwealth and then as 
general counsel. Jim's friendship and counsel served Governor Casey 
well during his two terms. He handled his responsibilities with 
integrity and a deep commitment to public service. He believed, as the 
Scriptures tell us, that ``to whom much is given, much is expected.''
  After his years in State government, Jim welcomed me as a law 
partner. He mentored me in life as much as in the law. He understood 
the call to serve and supported me generously when I decided to seek 
public office.
  Jim's life was a life of hard work and service, faith and family. No 
personal or professional accomplishments outweighed the love he had for 
Celia, his children and 18 grandchildren.
  While we are all saddened that we cannot spend his birthday with him, 
we will be comforted that he leaves us his example. As his good friend 
Frank J. McDonnell said at Jim's funeral mass, Jim embodied the words 
from scripture that ``a faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who 
finds one has found a treasure.'' For my family and many others in 
northeastern Pennsylvania, Jim Haggerty was our faithful friend and, 
for his family, a sturdy shelter of caring and love.
  Happy Birthday, Jim. We miss you every day.
  I ask to have printed in the Record the Scranton Times obituary from 
February 11-13, 2011.
  The information follows.

                           James J. Haggerty

       Attorney James J. Haggerty of Dunmore died Tuesday in 
     Naples, Fla. His wife is the former Cecelia Lynett. The 
     couple would have celebrated 45 years of marriage on Feb. 19.
       Born in Scranton, son of the late James J. and Margaret 
     Kearney Haggerty Cummings, he was a graduate of Scranton 
     Preparatory School, the College of the Holy Cross and 
     Georgetown University Law Center, where he was a member of 
     the Law Review. He received honorary degrees from Villanova 
     University and the University of Scranton. Jim served active 
     duty in the Army Infantry and as a member of the Pennsylvania 
     National Guard and Army Reserve. Jim served as law clerk to 
     the Honorable William J. Nealon, chief judge, U.S. District 
     Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania. A lifelong friend and 
     adviser to former Gov. Robert P. Casey, Jim served as the 
     secretary of the commonwealth and later as general counsel to 
     the late governor. At the time of his death, Jim was a

[[Page S3678]]

     partner in the Scranton law firm of Haggerty, McDonnell & 
     Hinton, formerly Casey, Haggerty & McDonnell and later 
     Haggerty, McDonnell & O'Brien. He also served as president of 
     the Lackawanna County Bar Association and was a permanent 
     member of the Third Circuit Judicial Conference. Jim served 
     as chairman of the board of trustees for the University of 
     Scranton and Scranton Preparatory School. He was president of 
     the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick of Lackawanna County and 
     served as director of the Greater Scranton Chamber of 
     Commerce and the United Way of Lackawanna County. Jim was 
     also a member of the board of directors at the Country Club 
     of Scranton and First National Community Bank.
       Jim was a loving and vibrant man, known to close friends as 
     ``the Big Fella,'' and recognized by countless others who had 
     the privilege to befriend him as larger than life. Jim had a 
     renowned sense of humor and an ease with people that endeared 
     him to all whose lives he touched. His infectious personality 
     was outdone by his impressive professional accomplishments as 
     a successful lawyer. He was respected by his peers and 
     revered by fellow members of the bar for his honesty, ethics 
     and fair dealing. He ranks among the most loyal Dunmoreans 
     and Democrats of all time. Loyalty was paramount to his very 
     being. Above all, Jim was a devoted husband, father and 
     grandfather and the most positive role model to those he 
     loved so dearly. His favorite times were spent with his sons 
     and friends golfing at the Country Club of Scranton, and he 
     most relished time spent with family. Summers in Avalon, N.J. 
     with his wife, children and grandchildren brought him 
     indescribable joy. Jim's generosity in life continued as an 
     organ donor.
       Also surviving are seven children, Jean McGrath and 
     husband, Christopher, Dunmore; Mauri Collins and husband, 
     Joseph, Scottsdale, Ariz.; James J. Haggerty, Jr. and 
     fiancee, Wendy Lettieri, Scranton; Matthew and wife, 
     Christina O'Brien Haggerty, Scranton; Cecelia O'Rourke and 
     husband, James, New York, N.Y.; Daniel Haggerty and fiancee, 
     Meghan Stott, Wilkes-Barre; and Kathleen James and husband, 
     Brian, Scranton; 18 grandchildren, James, Christopher, 
     Cecelia, Nora and Margaret McGrath; Clare, Catherine, 
     Cecelia, Rita and Elizabeth Collins; Abigail, Caroline, 
     Cecelia and Matthew Haggerty; Brian, Patrick, Edward and 
     Margaret James; and several nieces and nephews. He was also 
     preceded in death by a brother, Joseph O. Haggerty; and his 
     stepfather, John P. Cummings.

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