The St. Thomas More Society of Worcester County will honor four

The St. Thomas More Society of Worcester County will honor the four individuals in the legal field at its 62nd Annual Red Mass at 10:15 a.m., Sunday, Oct. 27, at St. Paul Cathedral,  Worcester.
This year’s honorees and their awards are: James Gavin Reardon, the Distinguished Jurist Award; Donna M. Reidy, the Msgr. F. Stephen Pedone Distinguished Attorney Award; Howard E. Stempler, the Bishop Bernard J. Flanagan Ecumenical Award; and Erin M. O’Connell, the Distinguished Catholic Layperson Award.
The 2019 recipient of the Bishop Timothy Harrington Law School scholarship is Ariana Campos Dominguez of Worcester.

DISTINGUISHED JURIST AWARD

Honorable James Gavin Reardon was appointed a justice of the Superior Court Department, Trial Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, by Gov. Charlie Baker in 2016. He has served on the bench ever since. Prior to taking his oath of office as a judge, Mr. Reardon enjoyed a long and successful career in private practice where he focused primarily in the areas of criminal defense and personal injury law. He initially practiced with his father, James Reardon, in the Worcester law firm of Reardon & Reardon.  
In 1999, he established his own practice. He represented criminal defendants in the most serious of capital offenses.  
He also served as counsel for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Worcester among many other clients.  
Judge Reardon is a 1976 graduate of St. John’s High School.  He furthered his studies at Phillips Exeter Academy, Trinity College and Georgetown University School of Law.  
He is a former member of the St. Thomas More Society of Worcester County and he has been active at all levels of both Worcester County and Massachusetts Bar Associations.  Most notably, Judge Reardon has served as president of the Worcester County Bar Association, a member of the Mass. Bar Association Executive Management Board, and a member of the Mass. Bar Association House of Delegates.  Judge Reardon was also named a Massachusetts Super Lawyer six times during his career.      

MSGR. F. STEPHEN PEDONE DISTINGUISHED ATTORNEY AWARD

Donna M. Reidy has been a practicing attorney at the Worcester law firm of Gould & Ettenberg, P.C., Worcester,  for more than 30 years. Her practice has focused on all aspects of real estate transactions.  Over the years, she has represented sellers, purchasers, lenders, landlords and tenants.  Additionally, she regularly appears in the Housing and Probate Courts representing her clients in property-based disputes.  Attorney Reidy is also instrumental in running her firm’s subsidiary title company, Guaranty Abstract Company.
She is a 1978 graduate of the University of Connecticut and a 1981 graduate of Western New England School of Law.
She is a member of the Worcester County and Massachusetts Bar Associations. Attorney Reidy also is a member of the board of directors and the secretary of Calliope Productions Inc., a community theater company based in Boylston.
Attorney Reidy and her husband, Robert, are active members of Our Lady of Providence Parish at St. Bernard Church in Worcester, where she serves as a member of the parish choir. Their children, now adults, are products of Catholic schooling at St. Peter Central Catholic Elementary School and Holy Name Central Catholic High School. She has also volunteered countless hours over many years operating the weekly bingo games at St. Peter’s School, which has been a vital source of financial support for the school.  

BISHOP BERNARD J. FLANAGAN ECUMENICAL AWARD

Howard E. Stempler is a partner in the Worcester law firm, Seder Law (formerly Seder & Chandler), Worcester.  His practice is concentrated in the areas of real estate, business matters, and catastrophic personal injury.   He also serves as counsel to numerous closely held businesses, offering legal advice on employment policies and corporate governance.  
Over his 34-year legal career he has tried cases before numerous state and federal tribunals, including the Superior, District and Probate Courts of Massachusetts, and the United States District and Bankruptcy Courts.  He has also represented clients before the Massachusetts Appeals Court as well as the Supreme Judicial Court.   
A graduate of the Washington University in St. Louis and the New England School of Law in Boston, Attorney Stempler has been honored as a Massachusetts Super Lawyer each year from 2016-2019.  
Attorney Stempler is an active member of Temple Emanuel Sinai in Worcester, and has volunteered extensively in his faith community and the region at large.  He has served as the president of the Jewish Community Center in Worcester and a board member of Jewish Family Services of Worcester.  He has also served as a Corporator for the Greater Worcester Community Foundation and a group leader for the annual Youth Support Campaign of the YMCA.  He was also a founder and board member of Worcester Pay It Forward, a community organization that uses the game of basketball to promote life skills and positive values to area youth from challenging socio-economic backgrounds.

DISTINGUISHED CATHOLIC
LAYPERSON AWARD

For two decades, Erin M. O’Connell has served the citizenry of the Commonwealth in various posts in the District Court Department of the Massachusetts Trial Court.  At present she holds the position of field coordinator where she oversees and implements quality control efforts and best practices in the various District Court divisions in the central region of the state.  During her 20 years of service to the District Court Department, Ms. O’Connell has distinguished herself as a devoted public servant, earning praise from her work colleagues, the bench and the bar.  
Born and raised in the Vernon Hill section of Worcester, Ms. O’Connell attended St. Peter Central Catholic Elementary School and went on to further her studies at Holy Name Central Catholic High School and Worcester State University.
She has been actively involved in all aspects of parish life at Our Lady of Providence Parish at St. Bernard Church in Worcester.  She routinely donates, solicits, and collects groceries for the parish food pantry which ensures that needy families have access to nutritional meals.  Ms. O’Connell also organizes parish meat raffles which have raised needed funds for the renovation of the church gymnasium which provides a safe place for inner-city youth.  She also is one of the main planners and organizers of the parish golf tournament which assists in funding  parish outreach programs such as the after-school homework center, female self-defense classes, and Alcohol Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous classes.

BISHOP TIMOTHY HARRINGTON LAW SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT

The 2019 recipient of the Bishop Timothy Harrington Law School scholarship of the St. Thomas More Society of Worcester County is Ariana Campos Dominguez of Worcester.  Ariana was the 2016 class valedictorian of the University Park High School in Worcester.  She gained admission to Harvard University, where she was conferred her bachelor’s degree earlier this year.  Throughout her life, Ariana has been an active member of St. Peter Parish in Worcester.  She is presently pursuing her juris doctorate degree at Suffolk University School of Law in Boston.
The St. Thomas More Society is founded upon the personal qualities exhibited by St. Thomas More, a statesman, author, and former Chancellor of England.  St. Thomas More was beatified in 1886 and canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1935.
The Red Mass is a religious ceremony open to the public. The term “Red Mass” is named after the color of the vestments worn by the celebrants and judges attending the King’s bench in Westminster, England.  In keeping with tradition, the deep red vestments are still worn each year at the Red Mass.
A reception will follow the Red Mass in The Cenacle  on the lower level of the cathedral, at Chatham and High streets.  Tickets for the reception are $50.  For tickets please contact Attorney Tom Murray at (508) 754-4900.