“The truth - the reality of my life - outshined anything I imagined.”

Monsignor Thomas A. Modugno passed away on January 11, 2022. He was 83 years old. Thomas was a native New Yorker. He attended St Gabriel’s Elementary School in Riverdale, Xavier High School in Manhattan, and graduated from Fordham University in 1961. He then attended St. Joseph Seminary and was ordained on May 28, 1966, and also received a Master of Science in Education from St. John's University in 1971.

From 1966 through 1977 Thomas served as a parish priest at St. Joseph’s Church in Croton Falls, NY, Assumption Church and Blessed Sacrament in Staten Island, and as Chaplain to Staten Island Hospital. In 1977 he was appointed Assistant Rector at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and in 1980, he was appointed the Director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. In 1992 Thomas was appointed Pastor of St. Monica’s Church and Upper East Side Episcopal Vicar, where he proudly remained until his retirement in 2015. Following retirement, he served at Epiphany Church, as the Director of Patron of the Arts of the Vatican Museums, and on the boards for the Society of the Propagation of the Faith, the McCaddin McQuirk Foundation, and the Alfred E. Smith Foundation. He was also commissioned as a Chaplain in the U.S. Navy Reserve.

Thomas passionately served the global community with grace, kindness, and love for over 50 years.

Monsignor Thomas A. Modugno is survived by his sister Carol Armas (Ted), his brother Anthony Modugno (Janice), his nieces and nephews, Tom Armas (Danielle), Jennifer Barrientos (Steve), Matthew Armas (Jennifer), Danielle Moore (Sam), Jason Armas (Mecaila), Marc Armas (Avery), Anthony Modugno (Margot), Amanda Modugno, Morgan Modugno, 6 great nieces, and 9 great nephews.

A Wake will be held on Monday January 17, 2022, at John Krtil Funeral Home (1297 1st Avenue, New York, NY). Visitation will be from 2:00-4:00 p.m. and 6:00-8:00 p.m. 

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Tuesday, January 18, 2022, at the Church of St. Monica, located at 413 East 79th Street, New York, NY. The Rite of Committal and burial will take place at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery located at 10 W. Stevens Ave, Hawthorne, N.Y. immediately following the Mass.

Memorial Contribution can be made to Ronald McDonald House of New York https://www.rmh-newyork.org/pages/honor-and-memorial

The Board and Staff of Ronald McDonald House New York is grateful to have been selected to receive memorial donations made in tribute to Monsignor Thomas A. Modugno. The Monsignor ministered to families residing at RMH-NY as Pastor of St. Monica’s Church and Upper East Side Episcopal Vicar. We may never know how many families Monsignor Modugno helped guide on their journey with a child with pediatric cancer, but we remember fondly the many Masses he said in our chapel and the countless visits he made administering the sacraments to the sick.

---Richard Martin