Judith Aldine Luszcz-O’Connell
Judith Aldine Luszcz-O’Connell, a longtime Sag Harbor resident, died on Wednesday, February 1. She was 66.
Born in Queens on April 3, 1945, she grew up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the oldest of five children, and spent summers in Sag Harbor as a child, before finally settling there in 1980. A graduate of Notre Dame High School and St. Luke’s School of Nursing in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Ms. Luszcz-O’Connell went on to receive her master’s degree in nursing from Southampton College, specializing in gerontology, as well as graduating from Stony Brook University as a nurse practitioner.
Ms. Luszcz-O’Connell devoted her life to the care of others, working at Southampton Hospital for over 30 years, most recently as a nursing supervisor. She also ran the hospital’s Diabetes Basics & Beyond Program, focusing on the care and education of patients diagnosed with diabetes on the East End. A nurse practitioner, she also saw patients at Peconic Family Medicine in Quogue, the Westhampton Care Center, and at the Shinnecock Indian Nation Health Clinic.
In her free time, Ms. Luszcz-O’Connell enjoyed spending time with her children, Jeffrey Luszcz and his wife Katie of San Francisco, California, and Alyson Luszcz of Cos Cob, Connecticut, and doting over her grandchildren, Rosa and Eliza. She also loved walking, dancing and traveling with her beloved companion, Chuck Neuman of Sag Harbor. Ms. Luszcz-O’Connell looked forward every year to the annual Thanksgiving dinner with her parents, brothers, sisters and extended family. She will always be remembered by her family, colleagues, patients and their loved ones for her beautiful smile, generous spirit and warm, calming nature.
She is also survived by her father, Frank Scudner Jr. of Pennsylvania; siblings, Frank Scudner III and his wife Vickie of Pennsylvania, Patti Accettola of Virginia, Deirdre Westerhoff and her husband Bill of Virginia, and Peter Scudner and his wife Terri of Pennsylvania; three stepchildren, and nine nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her mother, Geraldine Scudner of Pennsylvania, and husband, Richard O’Connell of Sag Harbor.
The family received visitors at the Yardley & Pino Funeral Home in Sag Harbor on Saturday, February 4. A funeral Mass was held at St. Andrew’s Roman Catholic Church in Sag Harbor on Monday, February 6. Interment will be at Calverton National Cemetery at a later date.
Memorial donations may be made to the Southampton Hospital Foundation, 240 Meeting House Lane, Southampton, NY 11968 or to the American Diabetes Association, P.O. Box 11454, Alexandria, VA 22312.