6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
1/11
ISSUE # 20
August 1992
FROM BRENDAN HAGGERTY ('50): Just a word of thanks for the placement
in Marists All of the note about the first Marist Brothers Annual Fund. Word and
gifts from former monks went on an upward curve just after the edition came
out. I know Sean, too, will be thanking you and asking you to keep up the
mention. A million thanks for a newsletter that is looked forward to like no
other. (3210 Crest Avenue, Cheverly, Maryland, 20785)
MOUNT ST MICHAEL
SAT U R DAY : 12 to 5
September 19, 1992

GMC PICNIC
Looking forward to seeing many of you at the annual Greater Marist Community
picnic to be held again this year at Mt. St. Michael in the Bronx, Nereid and
Murdock Avenues, near the Mt. Vernon border. The gathering will be in the
garth area on Saturday, September 19th, from noon to 5 p.m. Indoor facilities are
available in case of rain. Come with spouse and children or come alone. Bring
your own beverage and a pot-luck dish for a shared meal.

All Brothers are most
welcome to join us. Thanks to Brother Pat Magee and to the Mount community
for welcoming us. We have this picnic each year on the second Saturday after
Labor Day; mark Saturday, September 19,on your calendar. We always have a
most enjoyable time!
LIBERIA: This country has suffered much in the recent civil war. We print an
excerpt from a letter written by Brother Leo Shea from Pleebo: "I went to see the
Bishop and asked him what he wanted us to do for the next year, since the
schools were not going to open. He told me, 'Do anything you can for youth and
try to do something for the training of catechists'. We decided to start a
catechetical center. The Bishop is enthusiastic. We plan to begin in September
with a class of fifteen. We should finish the program at Christmas time. We want
to begin a second class in February. We will set up our trained catechists in
nearby villages where they can train others using their own dialect." (Taken from
FMS ECHO, Rome, February, 1992)
FROM BR. DES KELLY ('53): The Christian community in Pakistan has
suffered greatly during the past few months, as some of our Catholics have been
murdered, jailed, and forced to work in such unsafe conditions that several have
been killed in job related accidents.
On January 6th Naimat Ahmar, a school teacher, was murdered by a boy who
had been brain washed by local fanatics into believing Naimat was speaking


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
2/11
against Islam. Furthermore, it has been learned that the murderer's uncle had
been trying to have Naimat removed from his teaching position so that he could
take his place.
While religious bigotry and deranged fanatics have made headlines we continue
our work at the school educating our Christian and Muslim students and trying
to prepare them to make a difference in the society in which they live. We have
been trying for the past few years to acquire a bus to provide much needed
transportation for our students, and now at long last we are the owners (as soon
as we pay the bill) of a new 30 seater. With a little extra togetherness we will be
able to transport about 45 students.
One of our students played a major role in advancing our decision to purchase a
vehicle. Nadeem is a sixth grader and lives in Chak 79 that is about 15
kilometers from school. Each morning he cycles the 15 kilometers to school over
poor to non existent roads with his mother sitting on a rack above the back
wheel. She works at a nearby hospital run by the Sisters of St. John of God.
Nadeem drives her to work before coming to school and waits for her in the
evening to make the return trip to Chak 79. We asked Nadeem once if he found
the cycling difficult and his answer was an indignant "She's my mother." In Urdu
it sounds much better. In another week we will have the bus on the road, and we
will relieve Nadeem from his chauffeur's job; both mother and son can ride the
new bus. The bus will also provide a greater measure of safety, taking students
off the roads they have to share with trucks, donkey carts, and trains of camels,
not to mention the swarms of indigenous irritants in the warm weather.
A couple of weeks ago I noticed several boys leaving school on a bike with a
front wheel that had long ago lost any ability to hold air. The boys were riding
on the steel rim with just strands of rubber hanging on. I sent one of our workers
to buy a new wheel and then sent them on their 15 kilometer journey. The wheel
will cut their traveling time in half. That new wheel, as well as the new bus, not
to mention the food, clothing, and medicine we can provide to our poor families,
is all a result of your love and generosity. The Irish government gave us a grant
to buy twenty typewriters and provides us with powdered milk through Caritas
to distribute to the poor. The Brothers in Switzerland and in Rome have provided
substantial help with the purchase of the bus, and each and every one of you in
your own way has become part of the work we do in Pakistan. May God
continue to bless you and your families and all your loved ones. (P.O. Box 110;
Chak 47 N.B., Sargodha, Pakistan)
FROM ROBERT LOPEZ ('59): My vote is against the features suggested in the
last issue. To dwell on old events, names, and expressions would be
unproductive and unworthy of the greatness of lives dedicated to the growth and
perfection of the Mystical Body. I would much rather read about today and
tomorrow, how each contributing member of this Marist family sees his/her
reality today and how that vision projects into the future. (59 Heritage Drive,
Terre Haute, Indiana, 47803)
FROM RICHARD FOY ('46): Most of your readers know my history up to 1979
when I left Marist College. At that time I opted out of education for a new
career. However, I found it difficult to be considered for administrative positions
in the business world, age and educational background being cited as the main
reasons. I had opportunities to go into business partnerships, but that required
capital, which I didn't have. Curiously, I finally got my job at Boyden through
John McMullen, the owner of the Houston Astros and the Jersey Devils. John


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
3/11
had served as a trustee of Marist College during the 70's. When he learned that I
was available, he insisted that the executive search firm interview me for a
position in Houston. I rejected Houston, but the search firm got interested in me
because of my experience in administration, finance, and computing.So I wound
up working in New York for Boyden, one of the six largest headhunting firms in
the world. Currently I am the chief operating officer, reporting to a part time
chairman in London, who himself is a full time recruiter. That makes me the
only full time administrator in a Boyden network of 41 officers around the
world.
Prior to joining Boyden, I held headhunters in low esteem, as I judged them to
be an extension of the old boy network. To my surprise, the great majority of
them are fine people, moral, considerate, and trustworthy. The Ivy League
tradition is fast disappearing, replaced by an environment of performance and
fairness.
How do I fit into this company? My Marist background makes me truly
international in outlook. This goes back to our Juniorate teachers from France, to
Br. Paul Ambrose's exposing us to student Brothers from China, Canada, Africa,
South America. It was reinforced by my stay in Fribourg, and even more by my
participation in the chapters of 1967 and 1968. It imbued me with a respect for
other nations and cultures, a conviction that Americans no longer know all the
answers. Unfortunately, many American businessmen as well as many of my
American associates held a condescending attitude towards non-Americans,
which leads to resentment on the part of the non-Americans.
My rudimentary knowledge of several languages, but especially my ability to
accept people as they are, quickly put me in a position where I became the chief
contact between the American associates and our international partners; over two
thirds of our work is done overseas. My role as corporate trouble shooter has
enabled me to travel to Europe, Asia, Central and South America. Until Boyden
opened offices in Scandinavia, I was able to boast that there was either a Marist
Brother or a Marist College graduate in every city where Boyden maintained an
office!
The Marist experience crops up in many places. One of our Spanish partners had
Br. Basilio Rueda as a teacher in Mexico. An Australian partner attended Marist
schools in Melbourne. Last fall at a regional meeting in Brussels, Atauo
Tsukada, our Japanese managing director, remarked to me that he met a
classmate whom he had not seen since 1948. He showed me a class picture, and
I noticed that the inscription was "St. Louis College, Tientsin." I was able to tell
him that was a Marist school. My brother, Peter Foy, had visited that school
while he was with the Marines after World War II. Tsukada told me he came to
Brussels via Ireland, where he had visited the Brother who had taught him
English. He kept in touch with all his teachers, including Br. Doheny in Hong
Kong and Br. Raphael in Japan. Later in the meeting, he showed me a picture of
himself in Marist Echo, taken when he visited the grave of his former teacher,
Br. Ildebald in Furth.
I must avoid the temptation to be smug when I hear all the talk of globalization
and of the new global economy. It makes me proud to be a part of the Marist
circle, whose founder, a country boy barely smart enough to graduate from the
seminary, had the foresight as early as 1820 to insist that the Brothers' territory
was the entire world. It makes me proud to have taught Des Kelly, the wild


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
4/11
colonial boy from Manhattan who winds up in Pakistan. (I leave space here for
readers to add similar examples from their Marist experience.)
Family news: My brother, Peter, turned 65 in February, and retired from NCR
after 40 years in computing, No more tennis for him, as he had a hip replacement
and a heart attack within the past three years. Mary and I have a son, Peter, who
is a freshman at Marist College, and a daughter, Bridget, a sophomore at Horace
Greeley in Chappaqua. She plays varsity basketball and hopes to make varsity
softball as a pitcher.I took both children skiing one weekend in March. I regret to
say that by 2 p.m. I was relegated to the lower, kinder, gentler slopes so that my
children might experience the thrill of real skiing.(717 Washington Avenue,
Chappaqua, N. Y. 10514-3309)
FROM BR. CYPRIAN ROWE ('53): These Marists All letters must be thrown
away! When I save them, I am powerless, as I reread them even if I should come
across them for the sixth or seventh times. The feelings they provoke/evoke are
precious and not too few. For all of us the miracle of Champagnat is that his
Spirit wears long despite the changes of fashion even in spirituality.
Returning to academia, after setting up a special project at the Office for
Treatment Improvement (a federal agency dealing with treatment of addiction),
has been something of a joy. While the government work was eye opening and
exciting for a while, I discovered that poets do much violence to their selves by
staying long. I think, perhaps, I almost stayed too long. It took me a good while
to fill up again; school is a wonderful place to do that. I also work at the Johns
Hopkins School of Medicine on the psychiatry faculty as a Research Associate. I
really love this, working with African-American males, all carrying a diagnosis
of major mental illness.
I am in my fourth year of living with the Josephite Fathers and Brothers. These
men are family-like to me, but I miss our own Brothers. At the same time, living
in an environment that is alive with African-American life and rhythms is life
giving to me. One does not realize it until it is gone.
My mother moved to Baltimore in the summer of 1990. Nothing to do with me; I
pretended to be totally committed to her will. She is a great blessing, still
vigorously active.
My son (the one I adopted in Ghana in 1968) is a student at Marist. This year he
stayed at home and has been help to me more than to mother given my state of
disorganization at any one given time. I have one grandson (Cyprian Rowe) and
one granddaughter (Helen Rowe). A third grandchild died shortly after birth in
the winter of 1988, and my son's wife died in late spring of 1990 shortly before
he returned home for his first visit.
Last summer I had the great opportunity of being sent by the government to
Gallaudet University to study American Sign Language, one of the greatest
experiences of my life. Humbling, but wonderful. My hope is to work with
persons who are deaf or severely hearing-impaired. Guess I never quite got over
the beauty of Johnny Belinda.
Raphael Martin is pretty much in touch.In my travels I have been able to stay
with him twice. The next level, I suppose, will be making it to the fall picnic.
Oh, for a driver! (1546 North Fremont Ave., Baltimore, Md. 21217)


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
5/11
FROM JIM GULDNER ('66): After attending the 25th reunion of the Esopus
novitiate classes of 1966-67 last month, I was attacked by a flood of memories.
They were fond. I offer a short bio and then a list of those Marist memories. My
thanks to Pat Murphy for organizing the reunion and to Charlie Mahon for
sending me all of the back issues of Marists All.
It seems that I'm one of very few ex-monks who is not into teaching, psychology,
ministry ... I graduated from Manhattan College in Civil Engineering in 1970,
the same year Fran and I got married. I finished my masters at night, from
Brooklyn Poly. Worked for two contracting firms in NYC and then in NJ and
around the nation until 1984: capitalist, industrious, corporate ladder stuff. Have
run my own small consulting engineering and surveying business in
northwestern NJ since '84. God has been good to us over these business
years.We relocated to NJ from Queens in 1980. We have two young daughters,
Suzanne (19) has just finished her first year at Rutgers; in the fall Christine (18)
will begin her collegiate career at Drew University. Fran and I have been blessed
with them; they're straight, bright, and sometimes even fun to be around.
Now here are my Marist memories, given in chronological order as any good
engineer would do. 1958-61: upper grammar grades at Resurrection-Ascension;
football with Willie Maura and Joel Gilmary; permanship with Regis; the
obvious start of my Marist way, 1961-62: Freshman at Molloy; impressed with
my homeroom teacher from Michigan Tech, Br. Ronald David, and with my
French prof Br. Aidan Francis, who really steered my vocation; intramurals and
dances.
1962-63: to the juniorate in Esopus; seniors John Quinn, Ace Norton, and Bill
White at my first "table"; Dave Jackson leaving in one month; "Three Hail
Mary's and Lay off the Peanut Butter!" not working, with me winding up in the
hospital for a week; hand signals; bug juice; scullery; daily resolutions; censored
mail; my tormentors, Pat Connors and Bob Bifano, christening me "Diddy"; my
inspiration for being "cool" and still a Brother was Joe McKenna over at the
Novitiate wearing white socks and penny loafers; finally beating Chips Kubat in
ping-pong; PJ, JL, Denis, and Berky.
1963-64: on to Cold Springs, merging the two juniorates; losing Jim Collins;
stories of Junky's nighttime walks around the dorm; JFK; Beatles on Ed
Sullivan; Denis busting Blaser; Andy and Mrs. Andy and little Andy; Mt.
Washington climb; the famous Miss Clairol commercial at the Windmill.
1964-65: varsity BB with Bruce, Woodsie, and Greg Skrzypek; fighting forest
fires; losing to Jody Lederer in the pool finals; Army-Navy games; thanking God
for my classmates' sisters, such as Basil's Griff's, Steve Brown's.
1965-66: back in Esopus; Freddie getting me through the first month; "deep"
nighttime discussions with Tom McGovern and Jack Lehman; playing with
water and Br. Eugene simultaneously (not what we would now call a good career
move); the ten day retreat where I was after Fred and Tom Ting to cut down on
the talking during Great Silence (now there was a switch).
1966-67: closeness with Steve Brown; Br. Eugene's "reality" conferences and
directions; mail hand-delivered by my parents; Marist 150th anniversary with
Marist priests and nuns, including Mrs. Bob Buckley; Dang's last night on the
road with Jack and 0'D, with a little help from Henry Cisler and Bill Lavigne;
and finally my last day. Special thanks to Wally Klinger, John Wesp, Bill White,


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
6/11
and Bob Joyce for easing my transition, and to Jimmy Collins for showing me
the night life in Sunnyside when I first got home.
I hope these memories help to awaken other memories in my classmates, and I
hope they have the effect the past issues of Marists All have had on me. Still
your brother in JMJ, Jim Guldner. (15 Stanley Place, Budd Lake, N. J. 07828;
201-347-0961)
FROM GENE CONNOLLY ('44): Marists All has asked readers to submit
nicknames that they recall being used for some of the "old Brothers."
These may bring back fond memories:
Br. Anthony Charles: Tony Boards
Br. Anthony of Padua: Tony Shortpants
Br. Edmund Conrad: Sparky
Br. Benedict Henry: Big Ben
Br. Xavier Leonard: Ti Boute
Br. Henry Charles: Ti Gris
Br. Leo Joseph: Truman
Br. Anthony Mary: Hoover
Br. Constantine: Con-con
Br. Albert Hamel: Fat Al
Br. James Hellade: Fatty Jim
Br. Joseph Orens: George Washington
Br. Robert Koehly: Bob Experience
It is interesting to reflect upon the American Marist culture that generated such
nicknames and upon the community character and spirit that sustained those
names to an extent that similar names have not been part of any other
community I have belonged to, professional, familial, etc. In a sense, I suppose,
they are "family names," names we give to intimates as the Cosa Nostra does or
to familiars, as in Good Fellas, whose members share with us at least a general
purpose, and often much more.
As I look back over the list I have compiled, I cannot help but recall that among
those names are indeed "good fellas," people whom I knew and loved, some who
were truly great and live today enshrined in my memory and in my heart. (19
Bayberry Road, Danvers, Massachusetts, 01923)
FROM ED CASHIN ('46): Your suggestion of feature reminiscences is fraught
with possibilities. I think of Br. Henry Charles' compelling but inexact orders,
such as "Weed the rhubarb," which resulted in all the rhubarb being pulled up, or
"Chop down that tree," which meant the end of several uncertain, innocent trees.
There were those great extemporaneous after dinner speech duels between Linus
William and John O'Shea. And I think of Mike Shurkus's impassioned arguments
with Nilus about whether St. Paul corrupted Christianity.
One of the most fertile story sources is my high school principal in Augusta and
my director at Columbus in Miami, Brother Ben. Ben always kept an empty
Ballentine bottle for the visit of a distinguished guest. Before the guest arrived,
Ben would fill the Ballentine bottle with cheaper Scotch, humming a unique Ben
tune all the while. Of course, the distinguished visitor would figure out what had
happened after the first sip. Another of Ben's habits was to wait until someone
got up from table to ask for what he wanted. "While you're up ..." was a famous
expression at Columbus. Then, there were his transparent exaggerations: "O yes,


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
7/11
we always stay at the Aztec!" when he had stayed at the Aztec Hotel once. And
Ben had a compass in his head geared for the southern hemisphere; he would
consistently point in the wrong direction. We would expect it and point the
opposite way. He would always be surprised.
I'd like to challenge the real pros to tell some of their Ben stories ... Deccy, Hugh
Andrew, Gerry Cox. The book would be a best seller! (3412 Woodstone Place,
Augusta, Ga. 30909; 404-736-1561)
DECEASED: Br. Edward Michael ('21) died on Easter Sunday at the age of 87.
On May 20th, Br. William Lee ('46) died of a heart attack. Brother Aidan Francis
Flanagan ('24) died in late May at a Miami nursing home; he was 84 years of
age. And Br. Leo Joseph ('13) died in Lawrence also in late May; he was in his
nineties, May all deceased Marists rest in peace.
FROM TONY FRAGALE ('67): My life since a postulant in 1966 has been
profoundly affected by this statement, and it remains the basis of my
understanding of life today: "One of the main themes of the Book of Exodus is
that we have been chosen. God has us here now for a purpose. Each person with
whom we interact is somehow meant to be a part of our lives, and we a part of
theirs." John Malich, Old Testament class, Tyngsboro, first days as a postulant,
fall of 1966.
After leaving the Brothers from Lawrence in 1971, I taught in Peabody, Mass.,
for one year, and then moved back to my native West Virginia where I taught for
two years, got married, then moved to St. Louis to obtain an M.A. in Religion-
Education from St. Louis University in December of 1975. I went back to
another area of West Virginia, where I taught Religious Education at a Catholic
high school and worked part time as Director of Religious Education at a parish
for four years, during which I became increasingly passionate about the role of
the layman in today's church vis-a-vis the clergy. It was during this time, 1976,
that my son, David, was born.
Realizing that the pay and benefits of the Catholic school system would not take
care of my family's needs, I moved into the public school system. I had to
overcome my major incorrect perception that to serve God, one had to be
involved in Catholic schools. I decided to return to studies at WVU to pursue a
second M.A. in CounselingPsychology, which I completed in 1980. I continued
to take more courses in counseling and curriculum development until I was
asked to declare my doctoral candidacy. I completed all major field courses in
both disciplines while working as a counselor in a middle school setting,
teaching part time in a small liberal arts college, working whenever possible in
Religious Education until 1987, when with four courses left in research, statistics
and dissertation, I came very close to a nervous breakdown, suffering from a
major clinical depression which lasted for nearly three years before finally
becoming stabilized.
We moved to Orlando, my wife and I were separated and divorced, and my son
and I moved into our own place. However, God was actively pointing out that it
was still He who was truly "my rock of refuge, my hope in whom I trust." I took
a job at Edgewater High School in Orlando as a guidance counselor and also a
part time (?) job as Director of Religious Education at St. Andrew's Church. I
maintain both jobs to the present and have been led to renewed health,
rejuvenated enthusiasm and faith, and am having more fun than at any other time


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
8/11
in my life through the involvement that my jobs have produced. My son will be
16 this fall, and you know the challenge that can be, but he is a fine young man
of whom I am extremely proud.
I find that these years have grown out of the foundation I received at Tyngsboro
and the gifts shared with all of us by such men as Brothers David Ottmar, John
Malich, John Wilcox, Peter Ostrowski, the community of older Brothers in
Tyngsboro, Vincent Dineen, Jude Driscoll, and all who visited and shared their
gifts with us. I am firmly convinced that at each step of my life God has placed
me in places where others did have an immense influence in leading me to a
personal life of faith; through me hopefully others come to know and experience
His love. It is exhilarating to be part of His plan!
I often wonder about the various people I have met through my Marist days. It
would be nice to know that they care about what has happened to me, as I trust
they do.
I would love to be at one of the reunions. If any of you are ever in Orlando, I am
in the phone book, so give a call; leave a message if I'm not home and I will get
back to you. (4674 Pheasant Run Drive, Orlando, Fl. 32808; 407-292-0170)
FROM JOHN WESP ('65): I spent four great years at Marist: Esopus, Cold
Springs, and back to Esopus. Br. John B. gave me the opportunity to do a lot, as
many of you will recall. I cooked, I took care of boilers, I did repairs with big
John Sheehan, and I cut hair; I still do cut hair. I would like to thank Brother
John for all he did for me. He was a great part of my four years at Marist.
After leaving, I finished my B.A. at St. John's University, and then I taught at
Glen Cove. For over 21 years now I have been teaching in the Middle County
School District, Centereach, N. Y. I spent some time in administration, but the
summers are too important to me to stay with that. I went camping out west for
eleven summers, and I have gone to Cape Cod, my second home, for nine
summers, sailing daily.
In 1969 I married and now have three children, one boy 15, another 11, and a
girl 4. Over the years I have spent a lot of time with Bob Joyce, Bill White,
Brian Levens, and Jim Guldner, but we don't see one another often any more. I
saw Bill Parker several times in the 80's, and lately I met Don Gillespie. I
stopped at Camp Marist several years ago, but no one there knew me. I
remember my days at Ossipee setting up camp, another great time! I thoroughly
enjoy teaching, have a great family, and would not change too much of my past,
especially my four years at Marist.
I received copies of Marists All up to issue #18, November of 1991, from Jim
Guldner. I enjoyed reading them, and am sending them on to Bob Joyce. Please
put me on your mailing list. I sure hope you continue with the newsletter. (82
Main Avenue, Centereach, New York, 11720-1640)
FROM MIKE KELLY ('50): Thanks for sending the latest issue of the
newsletter. While it is always good to hear the news from around the Marist
world, it is sometimes sad to hear about the problems being experienced by some
old friends.
We are settled into Atlanta and enjoy the southern hospitality which is so much
in evidence. By this time next month we will have been settled in even more. We





6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
9/11
have been renting since September. By April first we expect to be in our new
home. It is a large house with plenty of room for our visitors, so y'all come on
down. Grits is served daily. Maybe that is what attracts all the young people to
Georgia. I'm told that the average age of the people in Atlanta is 35. If you come
to Atlanta, we'll bring you to the local fountain of youth.I think it is in Buckhead
where every other business seems to serve much more than water. Best to all the
gang at Marist. (575 Mount Vernon Highway, Atlanta, Ga. 30327; 404-255-
5017)
FROM MARY ROGENER = sister of John Rogener ('67): When I visited with
John and his family lately, he told me about the Marists All newsletter you put
together. It was wonderful reading about so many people I got to know and
hearing that they are doing so well. It brought back memories which are forever
... being a part of Marist. Many dear friendships were developed, and I still keep
in touch. Thank you for making it possible to hear from people who live a
distance away. God bless you for giving such a big portion of yourselves to so
many others.
G M C P I C N I C

at the Mount,
Saturday, SEPTEMBER 19, noon to 5 p.m.
FROM GERARD BRUNELLE ('46): My good friend Ray Blanchard gave me
some of your past newsletters. Strange "jai verse plus que sept larmes." That's an
applicable quote I learned years ago in a French class at the novitiate (1946-48)
with Br. Leo Camille. Indeed, Brother Leo would be proud of his student, since
I've been writing poetry in French as well as in English for seventeen years.
While reading one of the letters in Marists All, I discovered that some people
still care about St. Joseph. Memories of my childhood flashed before me: stories
of my father and mother visiting the holy Brother Andre at St. Joseph du Mont
Royal in Montreal. I have medals of St. Joseph that Brother Andre personally
gave my parents on their honeymoon. Instant inspiration! I dropped everything
and in a half hour wrote this poem "Ite ad Joseph" as my annual Christmas
poem. I dedicated it to Ed Canavan, to my Marist education, and to Marists All.
One day while singing the Salve Regina after many years, an inspiration came to
me; so I wrote a poem about Marist life at St. Ann's Hermitage, Poughkeepsie. I
dedicated it to Br. Paul Ambrose Fontaine, who once upon a time made a very
big impression on my life and soul, 1949-50, and in memoriam to Br. Henry
Charles, my novice master, 1946-48, who taught me love of work, both physical
and intellectual. I will never, never forget this man and his impression on my life
and my teaching career ... for I did become a teacher, 33 years in the same public
junior high school in Lowell, director of music.
In 1987 I was invited to read some of my poems at the Jack Kerouac festival in
his native city of Lowell, poems describing life in the "little Canadas" of New
England's mill towns of the late 19th century. That led to my being invited to
Quebec City for the first international festival of Jack Kerouac ... who
incidentally was a student of the Marist Brothers at St. Joseph's grammar school
in Lowell. Later I represented the USA in an international poetry reading in
Ottawa. I read my "Babel City" there and on Radio Canada. Seeds of knowledge
sown by Marists do bear fruit.


6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
10/11
What a tremendous satisfaction, reading Marists All. Someone does care about
our past, present, and future. Deo Gratiasi (P.O. Box 5157, L'Hermitage, Scenic
Road, Weirs Beach, N. H. 03247)
FROM BR. LUKE DRISCOLL ('33): For the first four years of hospital
chaplaincy here in Augusta I followed the assignment of visiting patients and
their families on hospital floors. From time to time I took up the work of
teaching, so that volunteer ministers could benefit from programs that would
prepare them for dedication to the Lord and His people in hospitals and nursing
homes. This past year I have been asked to expand my work to include all the
professional staff in the hospital, so that every employee would become more
aware of what the pastoral care department has to offer all who enter St. Joseph
Hospital. This has been very demanding physically, but has enabled me to enjoy
more than ever the many opportunities to deal with people each day. Praise the
Lord
I still manage to get away occasionally for much needed breaks. This past
weekend I spent in Summerville, S. C., with my brother Frank and his family on
the occasion of their Flower Festival. On New Year's day in New Orleans I
enjoyed a great Notre Dame victory over the University of Florida. Next week I
shall head off to Convent Station, New Jersey, for a meeting dealing with the
governance of the Esopus province. (1920 Highland Ave., Augusta, Ga. 30904;
404-736-6486)
A report: FATHER STAVES The Portland, Maine, diocesan newspaper has
announced that the Rev. Leo Staves, O.M.I., is retiring on July lst from his parish
in Howland, Maine. Father Staves served us Marists at the novitiate in
Tyngsboro for some fifteen years in the fifties and sixties. Off to Howland I went
to find our friend at Thursday morning Mass with a small faithful group of
lumberjack families. During and between coffee and muffins in the rectory and
lunch in a small local restaurant we talked and talked about many of the old
times.
Raised at Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks of upper New York State, Father
Staves studied with the Oblates in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. He did
not like his first assignment teaching in the minor seminary and shortly moved
on to his first parish work in Plattsburgh, there to shift into hospital ministry. Six
years later he went to Lowell's St. Joseph's Hospital where he taught nurses and
engaged in the "ministry of consoling." At the same time he came to us in
Tyngsboro for morning Masses, for confessions and guidance, and for "good
times."
Father Staves especially respected and enjoyed Jude Driscoll and John Francis;
they called him Leo. Brother Basus invited the "petit pere" to the "good wine"
and a cheese wheel in the caveau. Louis Viator led him to his cache in the
chicken coop, and the product of Peter Anthony's distillery was available to him
in the carpenter's shop. Those of us on the novitiate staff, in turn, were invited
out to see the Celtics, to take in "My Fair Lady," and to enjoy Anthony's Pier
One in Boston.
Fifteen years in Lowell and Tyngsboro were followed by fourteen years as
chaplain at the Maine Mental Hospital in Bangor and then by the most recent
fourteen years as pastor at St. Leo's Parish in Howland. That all adds up to a
golden anniversary!




6/22/2021
Newsletter # 20
https://academic2.marist.edu/foy/maristsall/newsletters/newsletter20.html
11/11
Now seventy-five years of age with a good bit of debilitating arthritis in his legs,
Father Staves will move to the Oblate St. Paul's Retreat Center in Augusta,
Maine, where he will have "reduced active ministry." He regularly reads Marists
All and has had several letters from Marist friends, notably John Francis. He
immensely appreciates the letters, and regrets that he is not a responding letter
writer.
All in the Marist family who have known Father Staves are extremely grateful to
him for his many kindnesses; we congratulate him on his retirement and on his
many years of generous service. Good health and much happiness to the friendly
grouch! (St. Paul's Retreat House, 136 State St., Augusta, Me. 04330)
EDITOR'S NOTE: We are now publishing Marists All three times a year: early
March, early August, and early November. Of course, we are extremely grateful
to the 190 different people who have written to us at least once. We anxiously
look to every mail delivery for correspondence that we can include in the
newsletter. Mail to David Kammer, 107 Woodland Drive, Harwinton, Ct. 06791;
or to Gus Nolan, % Marist College, Poughkeepsie, New York, 12601.
G M C P I C N I C
at the Mount,
Saturday,
SEPTEMBER 19.
noon to 5 p.m.