Prayers, love and support of the community accompanied the family of Lara H. Enright May 18 at a memorial service held at J. Allen Funeral Home, Morrisville, Pa. Mrs. Enright, administrative assistant and teacher in Villa Victoria Academy, Ewing, died suddenly May 12 at the age of 50.
A lifelong believer in Catholic education, Mrs. Enright attended St. Hedwig Grade School, where her late mother, Sally Hammerstone, was the former principal. She then graduated from Notre Dame High School, Lawrenceville, and went on to attend Loyola University Maryland, Baltimore, where she met her husband, Rob Enright. Mrs. Enright earned undergraduate and master of arts degrees in psychology.
Coworker Anita Toth, who knew Mrs. Enright for 35 years and grew up attending the same parish, recalls her service and passion for education from a young age. Toth remembered Mrs. Enright completing her service hours by teaching children at St. Hedwig while she was still a student at Notre Dame.
“Even then, as a high-schooler, Mrs. Enright had a special gift for working with children of all ages,” she said.
This gift continued with Mrs. Enright throughout her adult life, attested to most recently by her decade of service in Villa Victoria Academy.
“Mrs. Enright was our go-to person for anything that needed to be made beautiful,” said Filippini Sister Lesley Draper, school principal. “She had an innate gift for knowing just the right color, just the right style, just the right amount of elegance or pizzazz needed. We can look at the past several yearbooks and admire her creativity and know that in every picture we see the person or group is smiling at Mrs. Enright. She always added her personal touch to everything, which showed her heartfelt dedication to her Villa Family.”
Athletic director and coach Cindy Smith echoed Toth’s commendations. “She filled in the cracks, she always saw things that needed to be done and did them,” Smith said. “She did so many little things and never wanted to be publicly thanked; she was very humble.”
Mrs. Enright shared her time and talents with the Villa family for many years, filling roles such as after school supervisor, administrative assistant, yearbook moderator, ad and patron drive coordinator, communications coordinator, Senior Day coordinator, teacher and more – including “school mom” to many Villa girls.
Mrs. Enright joined the Villa family as a parent when her daughter, Eleanor, started as a PreK student. Ellie is now a junior at the school. During her time at Villa, Mrs. Enright was able to expand her roles in various capacities. Most notably, she took on the role of sixth-grade religion teacher this year – sharing her faith and teaching them to love God. One sixth-grade student wrote, “Mrs. Enright was the school mom and loved everyone … We all loved her with all our hearts. … Mrs. Enright always told us to be kind to others.”
Students shared encouraging words and powerful stories of their beloved teacher. Isabella Quinn, junior, said that even former Villa Victoria students and alumnae have all come together to rally around their friend and classmate by attending the services and sending their prayers. “Mrs. Enright was not just a Villa mom, but a mom within Villa,” Quinn said. “She did so much for the VVA community, and she meant a lot to a lot of people.”
Mrs. Enright was known among the VVA community for her spirit, generosity, encouragement, good humor and creativity. “While we are sad at her passing, we know that Mrs. Enright would be comforting us and encouraging us,” said Sister Lesley. “She would be refocusing us on being grateful for the time we had and encouraging us to not miss a moment to appreciate those around us. She would be leading us to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
In addition to her husband and daughter, Mrs. Enright is survived by two brothers and sisters-in-law and a niece and nephew.
Memorial donations may be made to Villa Victoria Academy, 376 W. Upper Ferry Rd., Ewing Township, NJ, 08628 (www.villavictoria.org/giving/).