Alumni Family Memorializes Loved One
The Musto family will memorialize Brian Musto, who lost a four-year struggle with cancer this past January, by establishing The Brian Musto ’12 Memorial Fund at The University of Scranton, which will help offset the education expenses of undergraduate and graduate students battling illness.Although Brian Musto ‘12 lost a four-year struggle with cancer this past January, his family and friends will gather together May 5 at The University of Scranton’s 5.06 K Run/Walk to ensure that his legacy lives on through a fund for Scranton students battling illness.
“Education was very important to Brian,” said Alice Egan Musto ‘84, Brian’s mother. “He used to wonder why he got sick at a time when he was so close to getting started with his life that he could see the starting line. We know he’d like to help other students going through similar struggles achieve their goals.”
A native of Pittston, Brian was the son of Alice and Gerard Jr. Musto. Brian was an outstanding student, graduating as valedictorian of Pittston Area High School in 2008. He graduated summa cum laude from The University of Scranton with a double major in management and history. He was a Presidential Scholar at the University and a member of the University’s Business Leadership Honors Program. Brian went on to Cornell Law School soon after but was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at the age of 24. Despite his illness, he graduated from Cornell Law with honors in 2016. A member of Our Lady of the Eucharist Parish in Pittston, Brian married Maria Kristina Melgarejo ‘12 in September 2017, just a few short months before his passing.
A Royal Connection
Brian was not the first member of his family to attend The University of Scranton; his mother, Alice, graduated from Scranton in 1984, and his older brother, Kevin, graduated from the University in 2010. Both of Brian’s younger siblings also chose to study at Scranton; Chris graduated from the University in 2016, while Kate is currently a sophomore scheduled to graduate in 2020.
Because of the Musto family’s affinity for the University, they decided to memorialize Brian by establishing The Brian Musto ’12 Memorial Fund, which will help offset the education expenses of undergraduate and graduate students battling illness.
“We were fortunate to be able to support Brian during his battle, but we know not all patients can say the same,” said Alice. “That is why we are establishing this fund in Brian’s name at his alma mater, The University of Scranton.”
“Patients in this age bracket are often too old to receive help from pediatric organizations and too young to be completely financially independent. Our goal is to help students with expenses from travel for treatments to books for the semester. These costs add up quickly, and patients often cannot work while fighting health issues,” said Alice.
In order to endow the fund, the family needs to raise $40,000. They recently launched a fundraising campaign through the University’s 5.06 Day of Giving celebration, and they have already raised nearly $30,000 of their goal as of press time. As part of the campaign, the family is sponsoring a team that will participate in the University’s 5.06 K Run/
More information can be found here for The Brian Musto ’12 Memorial Fund, and here for The University of Scranton’s 5.06 Weekend.
