‘A Good and Holy Priest’ and Beloved Pastor, Father Andy, Died at 73
Father Andrew L. Struzzieri, pastor of St. Clare’s parish, Rosedale, died Sept. 18. He was 73.
Born in Brooklyn, he was baptized in St. Finbar’s Church, Bath Beach. He attended PS 101, Lafayette H.S., and Cathedral College, all Brooklyn; Our Lady of Angels Seminary, Albany; and Immaculate Conception Seminary, Huntington (1971-75). Father Struzzieri was ordained Oct. 4, 1975, by Bishop Francis J. Mugavero at St. Agnes Church, Boerum Hill.
He served as an assistant at Our Lady of Mercy, Forest Hills, 1975-76, and St. Matthew, Crown Heights, 1976-88. He was pastor at Our Lady of Refuge, Flatbush, 1988-99, and St. Matthew’s, 1999-2012. While at St. Matthew’s, he also served as administrator of Our Lady of Charity, Brownsville. In 2012, he was assigned to St. Clare, Rosedale.
“He was a good and holy priest,” said Father Alonzo Cox, pastor of St. Martin de Porres Parish, Bed Stuy, who served as his parochial vicar at St. Clare. “I remember the day that we met after his announcement as pastor was publicized. We had an opportunity to speak at the rectory. Afterward, he went into the church and sat in one of the pews. I noticed him with a pencil and pad writing. A couple of weeks later, he showed me a sketch of what the new baptism pool would look like at St. Clare! He taught me how to baptize infants and adults by full immersion,” said Father Cox.
Father Daniel O. Kingsley, administrator at St. Clare, once asked Father Andy, “What did God tell you, today?”
“Father Andy simply responded, ‘Trust.’ I am convinced that until his last breath, he relied and trusted on the goodness and mercy of God,” Father Kingsley said.
Farewell to a Crusader, Champion And Knight of the Catholic Church
Mr. Joseph Edward Geoghan, a Catholic leader, died on Sept. 15 in Shinnecock Bay, Hampton Bays, New York. He was 83.
He was born on May 26, 1937, in New York, NY. He graduated from Saint John’s University in 1959 with a BA in business and received a law degree from Fordham Law School in 1964.
Mr. Geoghan spent his entire professional career with Union Carbide, starting in the mailroom in 1957. After graduating from law school in 1964, he joined their legal department. He served in various positions within the corporation’s law department. He was promoted to vice president and general counsel in 1987. In 1990, he was elected to the corporation’s Board of Directors. He retired from Union Carbide in December 1998.
For the last thirty years, he acted as a formal advisor to the dioceses in the metropolitan area on financial and strategic planning, development, and education. In 1996, he helped to found the Alive in Hope Foundation to financially support the spiritual, educational, and social needs of the surrounding community. Through his leadership and dedication, the foundation raised over $60 million dollars for Catholic ministry services throughout Brooklyn and Queens. He recently retired as the foundation’s Chairman of the Board. He has been a member of the Brooklyn Diocesan Finance Council since its inception in the late 1980s.
He was made a knight of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great by Pope John Paul II in 2002, and knight of the Holy Sepulchre, in 2005.
He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Kathleen Normile Geoghan, his five children, and 14 grandchildren.