Greensburg Central Catholic to honor retired principal and outstanding alum

Greensburg Central Catholic alum Timothy Dugan of McMurray and former teacher, coach and principal James Farrell will be honored at the school’s annual auction, “Follow the Yellow Brick Road,” at 6 p.m. Friday at Stratigos Banquet Centre, North Huntingdon.

Dugan, a 1979 GCC graduate, will receive the Distinguished Centurion Award for outstanding professional achievement and community involvement. Farrell, of Greensburg, will be honored for his devotion of time, effort and talent to the school.

Farrell, who coached GCC to the state basketball championship in 1980, was a beloved fixture at the school from 1964 through 1997. He taught world cultures, was a guidance counselor, assistant principal, principal, athletic director and basketball coach.

“Jim is a man of utmost faith and integrity who served as a role model to students and faculty alike. The students were always his first priority in anything he did for the GCC community,” said Sister Maureen O’Brien, a longtime GCC colleague.

Farrell and his wife, Betty, have three children, five grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Dugan is executive vice president and chief operating officer of CNX Resources Corp. of Canonsburg.

“The teachers at GCC gave me their time when it was needed and helped me through my class work, but they also spent time to get to know me as a person,” Dugan said.

Dugan and his wife, Mary Beth, have four adult children, all of them GCC graduates, and three grandchildren.