Leo B. ’26 & Edith MacBirney ’27 Costello

Edith M. Costello ’27Edith M. Costello was the proud daughter of two Laurentian graduates. Although she never attended St. Lawrence, she left a bequest of nearly one million dollars. Edith was raised on Long Island, attended Colby College in Maine and served as a CIA career officer. Never married, she lived much of her adult life in the Washington, D.C., area.

Her parents, Leo B.’26 and Edith (MacBirney) ’27 Costello, married shortly after graduating from St. Lawrence. Even after moving to Long Island, the Costellos maintained their North Country connections. For several summers, Leo Costello owned and operated a boys’ camp at Forest Lake near Warrensburg, NY, and later co-owned another camp at Lunnenburg, VT. The family also often spent their summers on the St. Lawrence River near Ogdensburg.

“This was a rather unusual bequest, since Edith Costello had never attended St. Lawrence and had no direct relationship to the University,” said President William L. Fox ’75. “Yet, she obviously felt a commitment to honor her parents’ legacy here at St. Lawrence, and she must have felt a strong connection to Northern New York herself. Their experiences here left a lasting impression and inspired their daughter to give so generously.”