Remembered for her quick wit and calm demeanor under crisis, Mary Josephine Brenneman was a nursing leader in the classroom and on the battlefield, leading patient care as an instructor and nurse in World War II and a responder on scene at two of the area’s most prominent disasters.
Mrs. Brenneman died Tuesday after complications from a stroke. She was 94.
She was born April 27, 1920, to John and Margretta Callaghan in Toledo. A 1938 Central Catholic High School graduate, she studied nursing on a scholarship at St. Bernard’s School of Nursing at Loyola University in Chicago and graduated in 1941.
After a brief period teaching nursing, she enlisted in the Army. She worked in hospitals primarily in Germany and spent time in France and England. She was awarded three medals and held the rank of first lieutenant.
It was at that time she met her first husband, Richard Hackett, who was working as a transporter for injured servicemen. They married in 1947. Mr. Hackett died of inoperable cancer three weeks before the birth of the couple’s third child in 1951.
After she was widowed, Mrs. Brenneman earned a master’s degree in nursing education from Mary Manse College and taught at several points during her career, including stints at Mercy School of Nursing, St. Vincent’s School of Nursing, and Flower Hospital School of Nursing. Among her many positions, she was director of nursing for Erie County.
In 1960, she married Vic Brenneman, whom she met as a co-worker while she served as director of nursing services for the local chapter of American Red Cross. Mr. Brenneman died in 1989.
While with the Red Cross, she led the response for two local disasters in the 1960s: The Oct. 29, 1960, plane crash at Toledo Express Airport carrying the California State Polytechnic College football team and staff that killed 22 people, and the April 11, 1965, tornado that killed more than a dozen when it ripped through part of Toledo.
In addition to immediate disaster response to the plane crash, she made several cross-country train trips to care for injured victims who were unable or unwilling to fly home to California. She was honored by the school for her efforts.
After the tornado, she went to every affected residence to assess families’ situations and make sure they were set up with necessary services, often working around the clock.
“Her faith got her through a lot,” said her daughter, Eileen Kerner, speaking of her lifelong dedication to the Catholic Church. “She was put in situations and had the strength to reconcile them.”
Added Kathryn Kerner, who said her grandmother taught her to read at an early age and championed education: “She was the perfect female role model. She was independent, strong, generous, and loving.”
She is survived by her sons, Richard and Paul Hackett; daughter, Eileen Kerner; stepchildren, V. Robb, Ben, and Bonnie Brenneman; seven grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Little Flower Catholic Church followed by funeral services at 11 a.m. The family suggests donations to Central Catholic High School or to Sisters of St. Francis, Sylvania.
Contact Lauren Lindstrom at llindstrom@theblade.com, 419-724-6154, or on Twitter @lelindstrom.
First Published January 15, 2015, 5:00 a.m.
