An incomplete list of all the children I have found or who have written to me that lived or attended school at Sacred Heart Home and School. If you have anymore information, please email me so I can include it.
It started with 4 nuns and 6 children. The highest number housed in the Sacred Heart Home was 194.
Only about half were catholic. Children came from single parents (they called them half-orphans), orphans, WWII refugees,both parents, neglected and abandoned children. Some stayed years, some only weeks.
Make sure you keep scrolling down to see all the names I’ve found so far.
The Children:Insiders and Outsiders
Lillian Schrantz
1970-1974
Geranchers, Louie, Stevie, Mary, Julius, Jeannie, and Julie
Szabo, Brian-the early 70’s
Vercusky, Kenneth S.- died in the home 1974.
Vercusky, Diane, Steven, Cliff, Wayne,Larry and William -1974
Wagner, Donald, Ken and Bob , from 1961-78,
1960-1969
Allen, Audrey and brother- late 60s -early 70’s
Brandel, Joseph- late 1960’s
B____?, Curtis
Barber, Wayne
Casamassa, Greg and brother -1968-1969
Dyas, Debbie -Hunsicker, Bonnie and Ginny-early 1960’s
Jeffery, Linda (1961-1971),Mary, Kathy & Diane, brothers, Michael and Johnny
Kent, Bucky, Donald, Steward and a sister
Kline, Vincent,Steve & Corrine-1960’s
Malatesta, Jaye-early 1960’s
Malinsky, Michael~1965-1972
Merritt, Richie and brother- 1965-1973
Miller, Christine, ~1960 to 1963
Otts, Marguerite and twin sister Frances- 1963-1966
Ressler, Patty and 4 siblings, 1963-1968
Rios, Daniel~1960-1965
Roberts, Flossie~ 1962-1965
Roman, Kathy Roman (O’Connell), Larry and Jeff Roman-1964 to 1969
Rooks, Dean and Charlene- mid-late 1960s
Rothermel, Robert 1967
Slaugther-1963Diane,Emma, Eileen, Nancy and brothers Mike and Tony
Smith– Gwen(age 7) ,Sandy(5) ,Christina(3) Albert (11) Smith.
Timmons, Mary-late 1960’s
Vitek, Theresa- early 1960’s
Wich, Michael-1963-1967
Zawadski (Hagar), Gwen- 1968 to August 1971
1950-1959
Altenbach, Jim 1954, and Sister Dorothy Simmons and their sister, Betty Salier
Almond Joe jr. 52-55- 1st-4th grades class of 1960. Accompanied by 1 brother and 4 sisters. Donna, Carol, older, Ronnie, younger and Sandy and Jean, younger.
Bonaskiewich, Yvonne (age 14-16), Judy (age 8-10), John (age 5-8), and me (Michael) _1956-1958
Bruneio, George– My family was in the home from 1945 to 1955. There were 7 of us. Six boys and one girl.
Dutko,George
Flatley, Helen-1957
Fenstermaker,Richard
Funk, Larry – (Outsider)attended school but did not leave there. His parents owned a restaurant on the highway
Herman, Stanley & Mickey
Hertzog, Lyn and Linda – 1957-1961
Hessinger, Bobby
Hudak Family- Barbara Klein and Rose Hudak, were residents of Sacred Heart Home and School in 1954
Kneiss, Martha
Lane, Robert-1952 thru 1962
Langston,Nick, 1947 to 1959 or 1960
Makuski, Rose, Georgetta who was in the baby dorm,Maxine,Georgie.- 1958-1964
Merritt, Dick-1951-1955
Merritt, Eddie
Messenger, Robert (Bobby)
Miller, John and Joan(Miller) Smith, (twins) Nov.26 1950 – June 23, 1959
Nocasio, David
Petek,Frank
Rudy– 1939 to 1947
Salier, Betty and sister Dorothy Simmons and brother Jim Altenbach
Schaeffer, Larry and Jerry
Sebastian,Raymond
Schrantz, Lillian
Skrovanek, Eugene and Kathy -1950-1958
Simmons, Dorothy and her brother, Jim Altenbach, and their sister, Betty Salier,
Slaughter, Eileen,Diane, Emma, Michael, Nancy, and Tony – 1958-1966
Sullivan,Mary-1954
Tomsic, Michael
Unger, Chuck -1956-1965 Arthur and Bobby
Vitko– Judy, there are more but I don’t have the names
Weber, 1953-1963 Darleen, Kathy and Richard
Wich, Kurt -1953-1957
Zartler, Joep and Frank, Tom and Rosie (Hockenberry) -1952 thru 1962
1938-1949
Stringer, William and Joseph ~ 1942-44?
Langston, Nick~ 1947 to 1959
Chesterton, Lawrence (Lon) and younger sister Rita(age 4) – Summer of 1947 *
Lebish, sometimes spelled Labish-1945, Betty, Bob, Gerald, Helen and twins Roger and Edwin. See story
1940 US Census
The list of children and caretakers recorded in the 1940 census
Some of the writing on the scan was smeared and blurry and all was handwritten so I may not have always gotten all the names correct.
The Sisters and maybe priest?
Anthony Brzoyouskie,age 48, single male ,completed Grade C-5,born in Pennsylvania
Mary Odelia ,age 53, single female ,completed Grade C-5,born in Germany
Mary Domiana ,age 53, single female ,completed Grade C-5,born in Germany, the Directress of Orphan’s Home
Mary Mauritia ,age 52, single female ,completed Grade C-5,born in Austria
Mary Theodosia ,age 50, single female ,completed Grade C-5,born in Austria
Mary Helen ,age 22, single female ,completed Grade C-4,born in Germany
The 1940 Census Children:Girls
Mary Annette,age 16, female , Grade 8,born in Pennsylvania
Mary McLane,age 16, female , Grade 8,born in Pennsylvania
Rose Petak,age 15, female , Grade 7,born in Pennsylvania
Mary Kerschner,age 14, female , Grade 6,born in Pennsylvania
Gertrude Bruni,age 13, female , Grade 7,born in Pennsylvania
Anna Shalicky,age 13, female , Grade 7,born in Pennsylvania
Annette Epriol?,age 13, female , Grade 6,born in Pennsylvania
Joshephine Donally?,age 13, female , Grade 6,born in Pennsylvania
Lily Maga?,age 13, female , Grade 5,born in Pennsylvania
Jean Dick?,age 12, female , Grade 5,born in Pennsylvania
Doris Gallagher,age 12, female , Grade 5,born in Pennsylvania
Joan Tijerinaage ,age 11, female , Grade 5,born in Pennsylvania
Eva Petata ,age 10, female , Grade 4,born in Pennsylvania
Margaret Shaol ,age 10, female , Grade 4,born in Pennsylvania
Margaret Spaits ,age 9, female , Grade 2,born in Pennsylvania
Jane (Jean?) Gallagher ,age 8, female , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Avoeen? Shaol,age 8, female , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Margaret Piziest?, age 8, female , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Catherine Spaits ,age 7, female , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Eleanor Dalen ,age 6, female , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Janet Wukiach ,age 5, female , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Mae gallagher ,age 5, female , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Josephine Spaits,age 4, female , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Fay Wukisch,age 4, female , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Ruth Anne Spaits,age 3, female , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
1940 Census Children: Boys
Richard Kersikner ,age 11, male , Grade 4,born in Pennsylvania
John Bguni,age 10, male , Grade 3,born in Pennsylvania
Euguene McLane,age 10, male , Grade 4,born in Pennsylvania
Frank Petah,age 9, male , Grade 3,born in Pennsylvania
Camillus Mays,age 9, male , Grade 3,born in Pennsylvania
Conrad Wiukitsch,age 8, male , Grade 2,born in Pennsylvania
Richard Zettlemoyer,age 8, male , Grade 2,born in Pennsylvania
James Zettlemoyer,age 7, male , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Edward Yuendt?,age 7, male , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Paul Siegler,age 7, male , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Robert Gallagher,age 7, male , Grade 1,born in Pennsylvania
Frank Spait,age 6, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Jack Ardinger,age 5, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Rudolph Panlie,age 5, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
James Siegler,age 4, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Douglas Lloyd,age 4, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Joseph Mandeaux,age 3, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Charles Yorky,age 3, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Joseph Kerschner,age 2, male , not in school,born in Pennsylvania
Unknown time these children lived in Sacred Heart:
Larry Schaeffer
Jerry Schaeffer,
Michael Tomsic,
David Nocasio,
Richard Fenstermaker,
Joep Zartler,
Frank Zartler,
Rosie Zartler Hockenberry
Bobby Hessinger,
Kurt Wick
George Dutko
Stanley & Mickey Herman
Cookie Skrovanek,brothers, Gene,Jerry,Joe and Bill.
Debbie Sikler
Jim McCue
Pile
Ken Wagner and his four brothers-When times were good, Ken Wagner and his four brothers ate government cheese and drank powdered milk. But when they were bad — as often was the case in their large, Allentown family, which relied on their father’s income as a cab driver — they ate out of garbage cans. By the time he was 7, Wagner and his brothers were living at Sacred Heart Home and School orphanage in Coopersburg, where they ate three squares a day and adhered to rigid schedules. They did their chores and studied under the close watch of nuns who meted out punishment in the much-feared “linen room.”Wagner has some tough memories of that time, but the now-retired machine operator said the home helped him find a comfortable life.”It made my life better,” said Wagner, 60, of Telford. “It made me who I am today.”
Sacred Heart Home and School 
My twin sister Frances & I (Marguerite) Otts lived there between 1963 & 1966
GeorgeTomasovic, Jane Tomasovic, Cathy Tomasovic . We arrived in 1958-1963. Myself(Jane) was the chapel girl. I was in the linen closet one day after I arrived for wetting the bed. Brutal, Brutal Beating!!!
I braided all the rugs for Donation Day and was dropped off in surrounding towns to go door to door selling what was called “chance books” or tickets numbers for prize drawings.
Hi Jane…I too wet the bed my first night in the big girls dormitory…very brutal beating…they used those green & orange rubber jump ropes…they were hard & they hit every part of my body.
Hello Marguerite, I felt sorry for anyone who was sent to the “linen room”. Sister Ernelda used the back of a long hardwood brush with the bristles at one end; I’d say about fifteen inches long. She could jack me up off the floor onto the table, grab my arm and continue back and forth. the brush was wide so it left horrible welts. My father used to give me “lickings” for wetting the bed but not ever in such a sadistic manner so many children had to endure. Since we lived in a compound no one would see the marks. So, so sad. These women of God.
Jane, they were such brutal women to us all. I never had the brush but it sounds like you lived through the most horrifying pain and punishment at their hands. I can’t believe they treated children that way. My brother Russell, sisters Sharon & Frances were there with me, and we hated it. We came to find out that our grandmother actually worked there in the laundry. How could anyone take their child there? I remember one time we all went into the swimming pool before it was filled, and mother superior took us each one at a time over her lap (she had had an accident & was in a wheelchair) and paddled us till our butts were on fire. I remember every Christmas passing around the gifts we all received the previous year instead of getting anything new. I hope God met them at the pearly gates and sent the straight to hell.
Hello,
I’m trying to find the book written from the diocese with pictures for sale my father was in this orphanage and his brothers and sister and now it is being demolished and I’d like to get him something in memory of his childhood can you please help me?
Contact the Coopersburg Historical society, they maybe able to help you find this book.
My name is Rudy and I remember 2 brothers named Bruneio or Bruno. I think the names were Carmine and John. I can’t remember other names and I’m not sure about the name Carmine or Carmen. What years were they in Coopersburg
I’m pretty sure a fellow named Wayne Barber was also at the home during the 60’s. I didn’t see his name listed. Wayne is/was from Easton Pa.
Donald Kent, bothers and sister, are also missing from the list. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the names of the brothers and sister at the moment. Wait! Bucky Kent is one of them. All from Easton Pa.
Thank you Dean, I’ll add them to the list.
Stewart Kent is the other brother, katdazzle! I believe he was the youngest. The sisters name still escapes me. I have run into Don occasionally in the past, and I may know where he is living at the moment. If he still resides in Easton, I may be able to contact him for more information. He has a memory like a trap and could probably contribute much to this site. Thanks !
That would be great, Dean. It’s been a very slow process finding information.
for memories contact me. I remember it all.