Memorial Service for Former Bursar
St Mary’s College in Crosby has been paying tribute to a man whose fundraising skills have enabled the school to pay out millions of pounds in scholarships over the last 30 years. The college held a special memorial service this week to honour former Bursar, Frank Crowley, who died in July.
The mass was attended by his wife Sheila, sons Dominic and Nicholas, daughter Clare, grandson Ben and many former colleagues. The school has also announced that its sports centre is to be renamed the Frank Crowley Hall in his memory. Frank Crowley helped to establish the innovative St Mary’s Development Trust in the mid 1970s. He believed the key role of the Trust was to pay the fees of pupils with less well-off parents, ensuring that St Mary’s was accessible to children from all backgrounds.
Thanks to the efforts of Frank and his fellow fundraisers, the success of a covenanting scheme and skilful investment in shares, the Trust raised huge sums for scholarships and bursaries. It was so successful that it attracted national recognition, being mentioned in parliament and held up as an example of best practice by the Independent Schools Information Service.
More recently the Trust also helped to fund development projects at St Mary’s, including the acquisition of the former Regent Cinema and its conversion into a state-of-the-art sports centre, and the creation of a new library in the former gym. Commenting on the memorial service Principal Jean Marsh said: ‘The mass was a celebration of the life of a man who played a uniquely important role in making St Mary’s the school it is today. ‘Over the last three decades many hundreds of children have benefited from the financial support of the Trust which has paid out more than £1 million in scholarships in the last five years alone.’
Former Principal of St Mary’s, Wilf Hammond, added: ³Frank was an inspiring and invigorating companion. His old school will always be in his debit for the vital contribution he made to transforming some of its most challenging years into a period of achievement and expansion.’
Pictured at the service (left to right) are Jean Marsh, current Bursar
Harry Ewins, Sheila Crowley, Dominic Crowley and another former Principal, Brother O’Halloran.
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The mass was attended by his wife Sheila, sons Dominic and Nicholas, daughter Clare, grandson Ben and many former colleagues. The school has also announced that its sports centre is to be renamed the Frank Crowley Hall in his memory. Frank Crowley helped to establish the innovative St Mary’s Development Trust in the mid 1970s. He believed the key role of the Trust was to pay the fees of pupils with less well-off parents, ensuring that St Mary’s was accessible to children from all backgrounds.
Thanks to the efforts of Frank and his fellow fundraisers, the success of a covenanting scheme and skilful investment in shares, the Trust raised huge sums for scholarships and bursaries. It was so successful that it attracted national recognition, being mentioned in parliament and held up as an example of best practice by the Independent Schools Information Service.
More recently the Trust also helped to fund development projects at St Mary’s, including the acquisition of the former Regent Cinema and its conversion into a state-of-the-art sports centre, and the creation of a new library in the former gym. Commenting on the memorial service Principal Jean Marsh said: ‘The mass was a celebration of the life of a man who played a uniquely important role in making St Mary’s the school it is today. ‘Over the last three decades many hundreds of children have benefited from the financial support of the Trust which has paid out more than £1 million in scholarships in the last five years alone.’
Former Principal of St Mary’s, Wilf Hammond, added: ³Frank was an inspiring and invigorating companion. His old school will always be in his debit for the vital contribution he made to transforming some of its most challenging years into a period of achievement and expansion.’
Pictured at the service (left to right) are Jean Marsh, current Bursar
Harry Ewins, Sheila Crowley, Dominic Crowley and another former Principal, Brother O’Halloran.
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