February 17, 2015 - An annual scholarship has been established at King’s College in honor of Colleen Shea, a 1995 graduate of the College who died in a 2001 automobile accident.
Colleen Shea was a native of Pittston and graduated from Pittston Area High School prior to earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting from King’s. The daughter of working class parents, she worked her way through King’s from money she earned at supermarket and babysitting jobs.
Established through a donation to King’s by the Colleen Shea Children’s Foundation, the scholarship will be awarded annually to a graduate of Pittston Area High School to be used toward the student’s first-year King’s tuition. Each year, the Shea Foundation will donate $2,500 to King’s and the College will match that amount.
The winner is selected based on his or her character, leadership, scholarship, sportsmanship, dedication, commitment, teamwork and perseverance.
The scholarship’s initial recipient, Carmen Lobrutto, graduated from Pittston Area in May and is currently a first-year accounting major at King’s. Carmen received a $5,000 award toward his first-year tuition.
As a senior at King’s, Shea interned with Prociak & Associates, LLC, and secured a public accounting position with the firm following her graduation. She was killed in an Oct. 2001 automobile crash on her way home from work.
A resident of Hughestown, Lobrutto was a member of the National Honor Society, the Pep Squad, and the Stand Tall Club as well as being a member of the Pittston Area basketball team.
Pictured, from left, is Ann Marie Durako, member of the selection committee; Patti Prociak, president of the Colleen Shea Children’s Foundation; Nancy Shea, mother of Colleen; Carmen Lobrutto, scholarship recipient; and his parents, Tina and Carmen.