Heart to Heart Winter/Spring 2002

Saint Vincent Archabbey and College will play host to an International Young Adult Forum on July 18 to 22 as a pilgrim-age event leading up to the observance of World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto, Ontario, where Pope John Paul II will cel-ebrate Mass on July 28.

The Saint Vincent Young Adult Forum is sponsored by the Emmanuel Community of Paris, France, as a first-time event in the U.S. The Emmanuel Community has organized youth forums for many years at the pilgrimage city of the Sacred Heart, Paray-le-Monial, in France.

Francis Cardinal Arinze, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dia-logue and a member of the Roman Curia, the Holy Father’s direct staff, will be a spe-cial presenter at the forum held at Saint Vincent College.

Campus Ministry Director, Fr. Fred Byrne, O.S.B., said that young adults from around the world are expected to come to Saint Vincent to join with young adults from around the U.S. at the forum where they will have an opportunity to pray together, sing together, share expe-riences from their different backgrounds throughout the world, and hear pre-sentations from some of the Church’s outstanding teachers. His Eminence Fran-cis Cardinal Arinze will be the principal speaker and celebrant of the Eucharist on Friday, July 19. Bishop Anthony Bosco will be the celebrant and homilist for the Eucharist on Sunday, July 21. This inter-national event promises to be a rich expe-rience, Fr. Fred said.

Groups of American young people from various associations and dioceses have already committed themselves to coming. Young adults are expected from states such as Florida, California, Minnesota,

http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/archabbey Volume 13, Issues 1-2, Winter/Spring 2002300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Pennsylvania 15650-2690724-532-6600

Newsletter of the Benedictines of Saint Vincent Archabbey

(Continued on Page 3)


The Jendruch Family of Slovakia, a popular singing group, performed at Saint Vincent over Christmas.

In the fall of 2001, Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., embarked on a Mis-sion to Asia that included visits to:

1) The Benedictine Mission at Wimmer Priory in Taiwan;

2) The Archdiocese of Bangkok in Thailand;

3) The Archdiocese of Ho Chi Minh City and six monasteries in Vietnam;

4) The Archdiocese of Hong Kong;5) The Fu Jen Alumni Association in

Beijing, China;6) The Benedictine Monastery of the

Holy Trinity in Fujimi, Japan, for a meet-ing of the International Benedictine Com-mission on China.

Archabbot Douglas met with the Pres-ident of Fu Jen University in Taipei, John Ning-Yuean Lee; and three of the Uni-versity’s Vice Presidents, Father Louis Gendron, S.J.; Father Joseph Wong; and Father Michael Kwo, S.V.D.

Archabbot Douglas renewed his friend-ship with Archbishop Ti-Kang of Taipei, presenting him with a memento from Saint Vincent Archabbey. The Archbishop

Priory in Tapei, Fu Jen Among Stops

1

International Young Adult Forum Coming

To Saint Vincent

Two Saint Vincent Benedictines studying in Rome, Br. Cajetan Homick, O.S.B., left, and Father Edward Mazich, O.S.B., received ashes from Pope John Paul II on Ash Wednesday.

websafe colours:

blue: #006699yellow: #FFCC66red: #FF0000

His Eminence, Francis Cardinal Arinze, will return to Saint Vincent for the Inter-national Young Adult Forum in July. He is pictured above blessing the belltowers in ..... of 2000.

Ash Wednesday In Rome

Mission To Asia

Saint Vincent Archabbey Heart to Heart Winter/Spring 2002

2 Volume 13, Numbers 1-2

Community to host this Young Adult Forum in July.

The highlight of our Young Adult Forum will be a visit by Francis Cardi-nal Arinze. Cardinal Arinze, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and a member of the Roman Curia, will once again visit our campus. He was here in April of 2000 to conduct a Eucharistic Retreat. A book based on the retreat was recently published by Our Sunday Visitor (see page 3).

Finally, we congratulate our confrere, Father Flavian Yelinko, O.S.B., after he became the longest-lived monk in the history of Saint Vincent. He notes in an article featured in this issue that he has attended funerals for all of the archabbots of Saint Vincent except for Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B., who died in 1887.

Sincerely in Christ,

Archabbot of Saint Vincent

Archabbot’s MessageDear Friends,

Our Saint Vincent Benedic-tines have three key aposto-lates — education, pastoral work and missionary activity. This issue of Heart to Heart is a celebration of everything that is going on in all three areas. From our missionary work in Asia to the new fresh-man residence hall being constructed at Saint Vincent College, we continue to carry out the vision of our founder, Boniface Wimmer, to go “forward, always forward, everywhere forward.”

In addition to the construction, Saint Vincent College is undergoing a major reorganization of its academic pro-grams, which will see the programs organized under four major schools.

In addition to our current progress in education, we also look at our historic

involvement in that field with the cen-tennial celebration of the Benedictine Military School in Savannah, Georgia. In March I visited the Savan-nah campus to take part in activities marking our involvement in this mission.

In April I will visit our mission in Brazil and see the progress our confreres have made in our service to the people of Vinhedo and

the surrounding area.This summer our campus will host

over 1,000 young people from all over the world for a spiritual retreat prior to the World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto, Canada. Father Fred Byrne, O.S.B., the Saint Vincent College campus min-ister, and other volunteers are working closely with the Paris-based Emmanuel

News fromAround TheArchabbey


F a t h e r Vernon Holtz, O . S . B . , received the annual Thoburn Excellence in Teaching Award at the annual Founders’ Day Vespers and Honors Con-vocation held recently in the Archabbey Basilica. The award recognizes outstanding faculty members. It was established by Tom and Tina Thoburn of Ligonier.

* * * * *Saint Vincent Archabbey Benedic-

tine Father Leon Hont, who is pastor of Queen of the World Parish, St. Marys, was named the Natural Family Planning Volunteer of the Year in the Diocese of Erie. The award is pre-sented by the diocesan Natural Family

Planning Office of Catholic Charities. A Volunteer Appreciation Celebration was held to announce the award.

Father Leon devoted the month of October to promote Natural Family Plan-ning, which con-forms with Catholic teaching. He was assisted by Father Matthew Laffey, O.S.B., parochial vicar at Queen of the World.

“We have a Benedictine model that says, ‘All for the glory and honor of God,’ and that summarizes it,” Father Leon told the Lake Shore Visitor’s writer Jason Kisielewski. “I was surprised and it was a delightful honor.” He plans to do the promotion once again in October of 2002.

* * * * *Brother Bene-

dict Janecko, O.S.B., has an arti-cle in the January 2002 issue of The Bible Today, enti-tled “Forgiveness and Reconciliation in Genesis.”

The article looks at sibling rivalries in Genesis along with opportunities for forgiveness and reconciliation. The arti-cle has implications for reconciliation among families, nations and religions today.

In the same issue, there was also an article by Father Deme-trius Dumm, O.S.B., entitled “Jerusalem: Polit-ical Idol or Sacred Place?”

* * * * *Father Mark Gruber, O.S.B., has

authored an essay which has been accepted as a chapter in the second volume of a Greenwood press publi-cation, The Anthropology of Religion: A Handbook. The essay chapter is provisionally titled, “The Bio-linkage of Bipedality and the Formation of Spatial Templates Associated with Religious Consciousness.” The book is expected to be out in the spring of 2002.

Father Mark has also received a con-tract from Orbis Press for the fall 2002 publication of his book, My Journey Back to Eden, a journal of his yearlong


Volume 13, Numbers 1-2 3

Heart to Heart,from the Latin

“Cor ad Cor Loquitur,” or “Heart Speaks to Heart,” is the motto of Archabbot

Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B. It refers to the Archabbot’s

prayer that giving and receiving authentic love may always be the chief charac-teristic of the Saint Vincent monastic community. This

was also the motto of Cardi-nal John Newman.

This newsletter is published by the Benedictines of Saint

Vincent Archabbey.

Publisher Archabbot Douglas R.

Nowicki, O.S.B.

Development DirectorWilliam P. Malloy

Writer/EditorKimberley A. Metzgar

Contributors to this issue:

Director of Public RelationsDonald A. Orlando

Public Relations AssociateTheresa Schwab

Alumni Director

Rev. Gilbert J. Burke, O.S.B.

Rev. Omer U. Kline, O.S.B.

Saint Vincent Archabbey300 Fraser Purchase

Road, Latrobe,Pennsylvania 15650-2690724-539-9761, Ext. 2601

[email protected]://benedictine.

stvincent.edu/archabbey/

Inside This Issue . . . Mission to Asia 2001 ................ 1, 10-13Young Adult Forum ....................... 1, 24Ash Wednesday in Rome.................... 1Archabbot’s Message ......................... 2Archabbey News .......................... 2, 4-6Nature Reserve .................................... 3Cardinal Arinze Book .......................... 3Book Review ........................................ 5New Cookbook..................................... 5Father Flavian Yelinko......................... 6Gristmill Products, Video.................... 7Savannah Benedictines ................... 8-92002 Retreats ................................ 14-18

Jubilarians ......................................... 15Diaconate Ordination ........................ 15Vocation Booklet ............................... 15Tribute Gifts .................................. 16-17Oblates ............................................... 17Environmental Center ....................... 18Archabbey Publications ................... 18Planned Giving .................................. 19Breakfast With Benedict ................... 20Aerial View ......................................... 20International Students....................... 21Gristmill Featured.............................. 21New Construction.............................. 21Obituaries...................................... 22-23

Cardinal Arinze:The Holy Eucharist

Saint Vincent Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., wrote the introduction to The Holy Eucharist, a book written by His Eminence Fran-cis Cardinal Arinze, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dia-logue in Rome. The book is based on a Eucharistic Retreat given by Cardinal Arinze when he vis-ited Saint Vincent Archabbey in 2000. The retreat series was held to help prepare the Catholic faithful to grow in a deeper awareness of the great gift of the Eucharist. The book is part of Our Sunday Visitor’s spring/summer list of book releases. For fur-ther information refer to the website: http;//www.osvpublishing.com. Retail price is $9.95 plus $5.95 shipping from Our Sunday Visitor by calling 1-800-348-2440.

New York, Georgia and Nevada. Different groups are expected to come from a vari-ety of countries around the world, includ-ing Ireland, England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, Philippines, Japan and the Caribbean.

The idea for Saint Vincent to be the host site for a pilgrimage event for young adults began with Fr. Fred who had attended a similar Emmanuel Community Forum held in 2000 in France in preparation for the World Youth Day event in Rome. Fr. Fred, then a member of the Penn State Uni-versity Campus Ministry, took some Penn State students to the event. “At one point during the Forum, as part of the Holy Year observance, hundreds of young people from Europe, Africa, Asia and South Amer-ica streamed through the portals of the 900-year-old basilica built by the Benedic-tine monks of Cluny,” he recalls.

So impressed was Fr. Fred by the expe-rience that he wanted Saint Vincent to host a similar pilgrimage event as a spiri-tually-affirming “gift” to young adults from around the world. “Let’s have Paray-le-Monial in the U.S.A.,” he suggested to the leaders of the Emmanuel Community.

The forum at Saint Vincent will run from Thursday, July 18, to Sunday, July 21. Those attending will then depart on the morning of Monday, July 22, en route to Toronto, with a stop at Niagara Falls. The World Youth Day activities in Toronto will continue from Tuesday, July 23, to Sunday, July 28. The Holy Father will say Mass on July 28. More than a million young adults, ages 18 to 35, from more than 150 countries are expected to attend this 17th World Youth Day in Toronto to celebrate and learn about their faith, to encounter the Church and to engage in various missionary and service activities.

The Youth Forum Steering Committee for the event at Saint Vincent includes, in addition to Fr. Fred, the following mem-

bers: the Rt. Rev. Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., Archabbot and Chancellor of Saint Vincent; James Bendel; Richard Bonfiglio; Santos Hernandez; Al Novak; Sally Anne Novak; Richard Strom; Karen Strom; and Therese M. Telepak, Director of Youth Ministry, Diocese of Greensburg.

For more information about the Inter-national Youth Day Forum at Saint Vin-cent and Pilgrimage to World Youth Day, consult the web site at www.emmanuel-info.com/en where a registration packet is available. Those interested in only attend-ing the Forum at Saint Vincent may contact the Saint Vincent College Office of Event and Conference Services at 724-532-5030 or e-mail [email protected].

International Young Adult Forum (Continued from Page 1)



News fromAround TheArchabbey

field work in the desert monasteries of Egypt. The book, edited by Sr. Michele

Ransil, C.D.P., has already been very favor-ably reviewed by the respected theo-logian of Notre Dame, Law-rence Cunning-ham, who ranks as one of the leading com-

mentators on the works of Thomas Merton. Father Mark spent a year in Egypt from September 1986 to August 1987, while completing his doctoral studies in anthropology.

Father Mark recently attended the 100th anniversary meeting of the Amer-ican Anthropology Association in Wash-ington D.C. He consulted with the Anthropology of Religion Section of AAA, of which he was active in its for-mation over the past few years. He was joined by seven students belonging to the Saint Vincent College Anthropology Club. The students attended several sessions of the meetings, observed primate behavior at the D.C. Zoo, and visited the Natural History Museum, the American History Museum and the Washington Museum of Art.

Father Mark also spoke at the “Springtime of Faith Conference 2001” in Akron, Ohio. Father Mark’s talk was entitled, “The Lord’s Day and the Voca-tion of Constant Prayer.”

Also, Father Mark was cited in the acknowledgements of an article published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. The arti-cle, edited by Robert Sokol of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, was printed in the October 16, 2001, issue. The article was entitled “Genetic Characterization of the Body Attrib-uted to the Evangelist Luke.” One of the authors, Guido Barbujani, thanked Father Mark for providing historical information and references for the proj-ect. It made international headlines

read the Gospels according to the prin-ciples of Catholic biblical hermeneutics. Because Catholics are so much in the minority there, they tend to be more confident about their faith in public set-tings.”

Father Thomas also has written a short article for the Lenten edition of Share the Word, a publication of the Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association (www.sharetheword.net). It is entitled “Living the Joy of Lent.”

* * * * *The Freedom Project, administered

by the Atlas Economic Research Foun-dation and supported by the John Tem-pleton Foundation, has awarded grants to 16 colleges in 2001 to teach stu-dents the virtues and challenges of human liberty. The 32 winning profes-sors received a total of $47,000 in fel-lowship prizes.

At Saint Vincent, the grant supports the class, The Idea of Freedom: Poli-tics, Philosophy, Economics, and The-ology, team-taught by Dr. Andrew Herr, Father Rene Kollar, O.S.B., and Dr. Bradley C.S. Watson.

The Freedom Project asserts that freedom is a vital, complex subject that deserves better public understanding. It contends that today’s students will become more responsible citizens of a free society if they engage in inten-sive, interdisciplinary study of freedom in its many dimensions. Each year the project awards grants to universities in support of interdisciplinary courses that explore the moral and material impact of freedom, free societies and free enter-prise. This year’s 16 winning courses were selected from 75 proposals. The project is administered by the Atlas Economic Research Foundation and supported by the John Templeton Foun-dation.

* * * * *Father Wulfstan Clough, O.S.B.,

spoke to Saint Vincent College stu-dents during the first of a new lecture series sponsored by Campus Ministry on January 30. The initial “Hot Wings/Hot Topics” session was on The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, which was the recent focus of a movie based on the book.

Tolkien was a devout Catholic and many of his personal experiences turn up in his books, Father Wulfstan said. He noted the series “has a very Cath-olic ethos because he (Tolkien) gives us a world that’s in danger and charac-

because its findings confirm that the eth-nicity, age, sex, and historical origins of the relics correspond with the received traditions about them.

* * * * *Brother Thomas Curry, O.S.B., was

among several members of the Saint Vincent community who took part in the 15K Memorial Race in Shanks-ville, Somerset County, Pennsylva-nia, site of the September 11 crash of Flight 93. The 15K was held on November 11. Other participants included administrators, students and faculty members from Saint Vincent Col-lege.

* * * * *Brother Elliott Maloney, O.S.B., gave

a presentation of his work on “The Gos-pels in a Latin American Perspective” at the Sonrise Church near Latrobe in December. He participated in their min-istry of song and then was introduced by the pastor, the Rev. Don Walczak, an alumnus of Saint Vincent College and Saint Vincent Seminary.

* * * * *Father Thomas Hart, O.S.B., and

Gouled Miganeh, a junior math and economics major at Saint Vincent Col-lege, were at WQED Studios in Pittsburgh on January 10 to attend a panel ses-sion on “Islam and the West: Conflict or Coexistence?” The event was sponsored by the World Affairs

Council of Pittsburgh, the Conflict Resolu-tion Center International and WQED Pitts-burgh. They also gave a presentation on the topic in the “Hot Wings/Hot Topics” lec-ture series sponsored by Saint Vincent Col-lege Campus Ministry on February 20.

Additionally, he offered a workshop on the Gospels and the Acts of the Apos-tles for catechists in the Diocese of Little Rock, Arkansas, the weekend of Febru-ary 1-3.

“Catholics represent only about two percent of the Arkansas population and are generally besieged by fundamental-ists,” Father Thomas said. “My workshop was designed to help religious educators

(Continued from Page 2)



ters that are Christ figures in how some are tempted and some sacrifice them-selves for others.”

* * * * *Father Ananias Buccicone, O.S.B.,

parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Parish, St. Marys, was pictured with a parish-ioner in the Lake Shore Visitor, Erie Diocesan paper, helping prepare for a pie sale to raise money for victims of the terrorist attacks. Parishioners sold 939 pies to raise $3,500 for the Catho-lic Charities Victims’ Relief Fund.

* * * * *Computing Day 2002, organized by

the Computing and Information Sci-ence Department of Saint Vincent Col-lege, was held February 25. About 100 students from several surround-ing schools visited the campus for the event, sponsored by Timken Latrobe Steel. Brother David Carlson, O.S.B., chairperson, and Br. Boniface Hicks,

Archabbey News(Continued from Page 4)

P. Günther Mayer, SDS, of Rome, Italy, is compiling a catalogue of works of Austrian sculptor, Professor Ferdi-nand Seeboeck, who lived and worked in Rome, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of Seeboeck’s death. The sculptor left a series of works, including two busts of Saint Pius X. Professor See-boeck is known to the Saint Vincent com-munity for the bronze Boniface Wimmer sculpture located in front of the Arch-abbey Basilica. He also sculpted four statues inside the Basilica, those of Saint Benedict, Saint Scholastica, Saint Maurus and Saint Placid.

The Archabbey archives was able to provide the above photograph of Pro-fessor Seeboeck at work in his studio, shown at right, in addition to photos of the sculptures for the catalogue.

O.S.B., were among the department fac-ulty members who discussed careers in computing. The event was also designed to help students understand what col-lege computing majors learn to do.

* * * * *

New CookbookRecipes from salads to desserts, with

all the good main courses in between, are featured in a cookbook recently published by the Bible study class of Father Stanley Markiewicz, O.S.B., parochial vicar at Saint Vincent Parish. Parishioners and parish staff members contributed to the cookbook, which is available at the Basilica Gift Shop and the Gristmill General Store.

Tom White, Project Archivist for the Historical Society of Western Pennsylva-nia, reviewed Jerome Oetgen’s book on the history of Saint Vincent, Mission to America, in the Fall 2001 edition of the society’s magazine, Western Pennsylva-nia History.

“In Mission to America, Jerome Oetgen skillfully reconstructs the story of Wim-mer’s mission, the growth of the com-munity and the creation of new monastic communities around the country.

“Oetgen approaches this institutional history in a direct way, focusing on the growth of Saint Vincent Archabbey and the conflicts that threatened it. His engaging writing style and focus on indi-viduals draws the reader into the history and conveys a greater understanding of the day-to-day problems that the monks faced, such as their struggle to balance strict monastic life and observances with their active role in the community and their attempt to maintain their German identity. At the same time, Oetgen man-ages to show the larger mission of the Benedictines and their place in society by emphasizing their role as mission-aries, teachers, and priests. The book manages to walk the fine line between

Book on Saint Vincent History Reviewed in Society’s Magazine

scholarly and popular writing, making the book accessible to both audiences.”

“... Led by [Boniface] Wimmer, the monks of Saint Vincent overcame many difficulties in the early years. Oetgen emphasizes Wimmer’s determination to make the monastery successful and self-sufficient. ... Until his death in 1887, Boniface Wimmer maintained stability at Saint Vincent and sent out missionaries to establish new monastic communities around the country, many of which even-tually became independent Benedictine abbeys....”

White writes that “Jerome Oetgen has successfully captured the long and com-plex history of Saint Vincent Archabbey in a very readable yet thorough form. There are a few sections dealing with the missions and the recent history where there are probably more details than nec-essary, but it does not detract from the flow of the book. The extensive appen-dices and bibliography reflect Oetgen’s level of archival research on both sides of the Atlantic. He has illuminated one of Western Pennsylvania’s oldest religious institutions. Mission to America is a valu-able contribution to the study of religion in America.”



Father Flavian Yelinko, O.S.B., Becomes Longest-Lived Monk In Saint Vincent History

In 1846 Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B., came to America from Bavaria with 18 followers to found the first Benedictine monastery in the United States, a Semi-nary for training men for the priesthood, and a school that was later to become Saint Vincent College.

In the 206 years since he arrived, Saint Vincent College has developed into an institution with a nationwide rep-utation for academic excellence, and thousands of its graduates have gone on to successful careers in many differ-ent fields. Saint Vincent Seminary has prepared over 2,400 men for the priest-hood. Saint Vincent Archabbey has had hundreds of men become Benedictine monks and serve at dozens of parishes and missions in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, Brazil and Taiwan. There have been ten archabbots of the monastic community since Boniface Wimmer died in 1887.

But on January 18, 2002, Fr. Flavian Yelkinko, O.S.B., earned a unique dis-tinction when he became the longest-lived monk in the history of Saint Vincent.

When Fr. Flavian and Fr. Omer U. Kline, O.S.B., archabbey archivist, were young priests, they both knew Fr. Fidelis Busam, O.S.B., to be the oldest monk.

“In my own knowledge, going to 1943,” Fr. Omer recounted, “Fr. Fidelis was the oldest monk. When he died on April 29 of that year, he was 95 years, 4 months and 15 days old.”

Fr. Omer knew that Fr. Flavian, born on September 2, 1906, was getting close to becoming the oldest monk. So he recruited Benedictine Fr. Donald Raila, O.S.B., a mathematician before he became a priest, to calculate the date on which Fr. Flavian would pass Fr. Fidelis.

“Fr. Donald determined that on Janu-ary 18, Fr. Flavian would have lived 95 years, 4 months and 16 days,” Fr. Omer said. And he is adding to that record daily.

Fr. Flavian is a familiar sight on campus, making his rounds on his fre-quent walks around the grounds. He attributes his long life to “the grace of God.” When the present Archabbot,

Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., learned of the achievement, a special celebration was planned, with Fr. Flavian selecting the menu for the occasion — prime rib.

Born in Palmerton, which is near Allentown, Pennsylvania, Fr. Flavian became interested in the priesthood when he was a young boy. His family had been friends with a Franciscan pastor in Scranton and a Redemptorist priest, but he became curious about a Benedictine priest who visisted his parish.

“All of the other orders were coaxing me to join them, but when I talked to the Benedictine priest, he told me they had enough applicants. So I wrote to Saint Vincent, but they weren’t all that con-vinced about me. So my mother wrote to them in German, which did the trick,” he said, and he arrived in 1920 to begin the four years of preparatory school and two years of college, with tuition, board and lodging costing $350 for the year.

After that scholastics would enter the novitiate and those continuing on the priesthood entered the Seminary with two years of philosophy to complete the college course and four years of the-ology for ordination. He made his first vows as a Benedictine on July 2, 1927, and his solmen profession on July 11, 1930. He was ordained a priest in the Saint Vincent Archabbey Church on

June 18, 1933 by Bishop Hugh Boyle of Pittsburgh.

Fr. Flavian noted that he has been present for the funerals of every deceased Saint Vincent archabbot except for Boniface Wimmer, who died in 1887.

During his time, Fr. Flavian remem-bers construction of Aurelius Hall, which was started in 1920. Eighty-two years later, this building be replaced as a freshman dormitory by one now under construction and scheduled to open in August of 2002. At the time Aurelius housed seminarians, who later moved to Wimmer Hall, then to Leander.

“There were no paved roads,” he recalled, and an automobile on campus was a rarity. “There was very little com-munication. When I got here, the whole place had one telephone, manned by Br. Jake in the monastery. When he was out mowing the lawn, which was about half the time, there was no one to answer the phone.”

Fr. Flavian became the first librarian and founder of an “official” library at Saint Vincent College in a rather unre-markable way:

“When I came out of the novitiate, I was an assistant in the Archabbey Library. There were books all over the place, but in no one particular place. There was a room above the president’s office where people could go in and look at the books. People just helped them-selves and you can imagine what hap-pened.”

So when Archabbot Aurelius Stehle, the fourth Archabbot of Saint Vincent died, and Alfred Koch became the fifth Archabbot in 1930, he felt the need for a more organized library. “About a month after Alfred Koch was made Archabbot he called me to meet him in the study hall. They were hauling books in bas-kets from all the various ‘libraries’ on campus and dumping them on the floor of the study hall. Archabbot Alfred told me ‘you’re the new librarian.’

“I asked him where the shelves were, then he pointed them out to me. They were there on the floor. He said ‘it’s your

Rev. Flavian Yelinko, O.S.B.




New Gristmill Products

A new pancake mix made with Saint Vincent Gristmill flour, and tote bags and bread warmers featuring the Saint Vincent Gristmill are the latest offerings from the Gristmill General Store on Beatty Road. The pancake mix is made from Saint Vin-cent unbleached flour. Each packet yields 18 four-inch pancakes, which should be cooked on a hot, lightly greased griddle.

The Gristmill, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is now illustrated on canvas tote bags and on bread warmers. These items join a number of other Grist-mill products, including gourmet coffee and chocolates, Saint Vincent bread and bread mix, cookie cutters, and the Cat’s Meow replica of the Gristmill.

Once used to grind the wheat, corn, barley, rye, oats and buckwheat that the monks raised, the Gristmill still provides flour for the famous Saint Vincent bread. A local bakery has been using Saint Vincent flours and the Saint Vincent bread recipe to produce the famed bread, which is available at the General Store. The bread mix is also available in a jar, allowing store patrons to bake Saint Vincent Bread themselves.

The Gristmill General Store is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays and from 1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays. The General Store’s phone is 724-537-0304.

Cat’s Meow GristmillThe Saint Vincent Gristmill is the latest in the

Saint Vincent Cat’s Meow Village Collection. Now available at the Gristmill General Store on Beatty Road, the Gristmill Cat’s Meow retails for $17.50. If ordered by mail from Archabbey Publications, there is an additional $4.50 for shipping and handling. Other Cat’s Meow pieces of the Saint Vincent series include Aurelius Hall, the Sauerkraut Tower and the Basilica. These are available from the Saint Vincent College Alumni Office by calling 724-537-4568.

Gristmill Video Now ShowingA new eight and a half-minute video detailing the mill-

ing process from the grain to the grinding to the finished product is now showing at the Gristmill Museum, which is adjacent to the General Store on the ground floor of the gristmill. The video is narrated by Father Paul Taylor, O.S.B., who heads the Gristmill Committee and at one time was a miller at the gristmill. The Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays and from 12:30 to 4 p.m. Sundays.



(Editor’s Note: The following is a condensed version of a history of the Saint Vincent foundation in Savan-nah, written by Jerome Oetgen.)

On May 13, 1874, two Benedictine monks sent from France by Abbot Raphael Tests, O.S.B., Abbot General of the Benedictine Cassinese Congrega-tion of the Primitive Observance, arrived in Savannah after having made a short stop at Saint Vincent Abbey in Beatty, Pennsylvania, to receive the advice and blessings of Abbot Boniface Wimmer who had made the first monastic foun-dation in the United States in 1846. Intending to eventually establish a mon-astery in Georgia, the two monks — Rev. Raphael Wissel, O.S.B., of Subi-aco, and Rev. Gabriel Bergier, O.S.B., of Pierre-qui-Vire, established St. Bene-dict’s Parish in the city soon after their arrival. The parish church was located on the corner of Harris and East Broad Streets, and a parish school was con-structed on Perry Street.

In order to staff the school with teach-ers, Father Gabriel, the superior, peti-tioned Abbot Boniface Wimmer who sent Brother Philip Cassidy, O.S.B., from Saint Vincent. The school opened in 1875 with Brother Philip as the first instructor, and the first year’s enrollment was fifty stu-dents.

Shortly afterward a number of can-didates applied to Father Gabriel for admission to the Benedictine order both

as clerics and as lay brothers; and in view of these optimistic circumstances, the superior bought a small plot of land for $280 at Isle of Hope, a small pen-insula about six miles from Savannah. Father Gabriel planned to build a mon-astery and novitiate on this property. In May, 1876, the monks received from Dr. Stephen F. Dupon another plot, 135 by 100 feet, adjoining the original prop-erty. There was a small frame building on Dupon’s land which the monks con-verted into a chapel. Finally they con-structed a small monastery to house the growing community. They moved into the new building during the summer of 1876. Father Raphael Wissel remained in Savannah to run St. Benedict’s Parish.

Several months after the Benedic-tines had established themselves at Isle of Hope and when the future seemed bright, calamity struck in the form of a yellow fever epidemic. ... In a three-week period between September and October, 1876, the Benedictine community at the Isle of Hope was decimated. The supe-rior, Father Gabriel, a clerical novice, and a brotherhood postulant died. The sickness radically disrupted the founda-tion. The remnants of the small commu-nity soon decided to leave and went to Oklahoma where ... they joined Benedic-tines of the Congregation of the Primitive Observance who were working among the Indians.

Bishop William H. Gross turned over

control of the parish to a secular priest, Rev. Fridolin Eckert; and, being unable to continue the foundation at Isle of Hope himself, he applied to Boniface Wimmer to take control of the property and to establish a school for African-American children on it.

In January, 1877, Wimmer replied to Gross that he would undertake the rees-tablishment of the monastery as well as supply the necessary manpower to begin a school for African-Americans, provid-ing that “the work harmonizes with the principles of the Benedictine Order.”

In the evening of March 2, 1877, six months after the yellow fever epidemic had struck Father Gabriel Bergier’s com-munity at Isle of Hope and two months after Bishop Gross had requested aid from Saint Vincent, Rev. Oswald Moos-mueller, O.S.B., arrived in Savannah accompanied by Rev. Maurice Kaeder, O.S.B.

“The buildings are miserable,” he wrote to Wimmer. “This is no place for a mon-astery. Two miles from here by boat is Skidaway Island” where Bishop Gross owned 713 acres of land he intended to give the monks.

Father Oswald Moosmueller worked quickly. Less than two weeks after arriv-ing in Savannah, he wrote Abbot Bon-iface that “next week we will get our charter under the title, ‘The Benedictine

Savannah Benedictines Mark 100 Years of School’s Founding

Saint Vincent Benedictines from Savannah, along with Most Rev. J. Kevin Boland, Bishop of Savannah, diocesan officials and other guests, marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of Benedictine Military High School in Savannah, Georgia.




Order in Georgia,’ with $10,000 invested in real estate for the ‘Education of Youth.’ The Bishop will transfer the prop-erty to our Charter for the purpose of conducting a manual labor school for African-American boys.’ ” Three African-American brothers, the only monks of Father Gabriel Bergier’s community who didn’t go to Oklahoma, were to assist Father Oswald in his new task.

On April 10, 1877 Father Oswald wrote Abbot Innocent of St. Benedict’s Abbey, Kansas, that logs had already been cut for the proposed buildings: a monastery, a dormitory for the students, and a store-house. He continued, “Our support must come from the farm of 713 acres of which 300 acres are cleared land. This year we expect to plant 40-50 acres of rice, corn, sweet potatoes, sugar cane, and sea-island cotton.”

Father Oswald hoped to become as financially independent as possible by basing the community’s economy on agriculture. ... The agricultural efforts of the monks, however, were never very successful; and in fact, between 1881 and 1887, the community on Skidaway depended on Saint Vincent for its flour supply.

Toward the end of August, 1879, the Abbot accepted Prior Oswald’s invita-tion and visited the island for the second time. Abbot Boniface and Father Oswald met with Bishop Gross; and the three decided that the Benedictines from Saint Vincent, like the first Benedictines from Europe, should establish an African-American parish in Savannah. Father Oswald volunteered to become pastor.

Abbot Boniface had brought with him from Saint Vincent Rev. Melchior Reichert, O.S.B., to assist on Skidaway, and it was decided that Father Melchior would become superior of the monas-tery while Father Oswald would reside at the Bishop’s residence in the city until the parish was organized. Fourteen lots were bought on Habersham Street between St. James and St. Paul Streets; and the property was deeded to “The Benedictine Order in Georgia.”

In 1884 Mary Help Priory, North Caro-lina, was elevated to the rank of abbey with the monasteries of Richmond, Vir-ginia, and Skidaway Island, Georgia, as missions. Father Oswald Moosmuel-ler was elected first abbot but declined to accept the position. Father Oswald

continued to administer Sacred Heart Parish, which had become a mis-sion of the new abbey. He, himself, however, remained affiliated with Saint Vincent in Pennsyl-vania.

The loss of their greatest single benefactor (Abbot Boniface Wimmer, who died in 1887) was a heavy blow to the Georgia Bene-dictines; and a tidal wave in 1889, which ruined the fresh water on the island, as well as a fire in the same year, which destroyed several of the monas-tery’s buildings, determined the end of the monastery and school for African-Americans on the island. The Benedic-tines withdrew from Skidaway in 1889.

Father Melchior Reichert went to Savannah where he worked for a time at the newly established Saint Benedict’s Parish for African-Americans on East Broad and Gaston streets, the parish originally conceived by Father Oswald before his return to Saint Vincent. Father Melchior went to Belmont in the early 1890s where he served in several capac-ities, as sub-prior and prior, until his death in 1940. The Benedictine Order turned over control of Saint Benedict’s Parish in 1907 to the Society of African Missions.

Sacred Heart Parish continued to func-tion under the auspices of the monks from Belmont. In 1902 the church’s loca-

tion was moved to Bull and 33rd street; and in that year, at the invitation of Bishop Ben-jamin Keiley, a successor to Bishop Gross, the Belmont Benedictines founded a mili-tary high school on the prop-erty adjacent to Sacred Heart rectory. Sacred Heart Parish was elevated to the rank of priory dependent on Bel-mont, and Rev. Bernard Haas, O.S.B., was named first prior in 1902.

The little chapel at Isle of Hope which had been estab-

lished by the French Benedictines in 1876 was closed in 1888. It was reopened, however, in 1908 by monks from Sacred Heart Priory.

The location of Sacred Heart Priory and Benedictine Military School was moved to Seawright Drive from Bull Street in 1963. In 1967 they came under the auspices of Saint Vincent Archab-bey, Latrobe, and monks from Saint Vin-cent teach in Georgia once again.

The property and buildings on Skid-away Island, where Benedictine monks lived for more than a decade, were sold in 1917 by Abbot Leo Haid of Belmont. The buildings were dismantled in the mid-twentieth century, but reflections of the work done there by the monks are still in evidence today. Most notably, Priests’ Landing on the island marks the spot where the monks embarked and disembarked on their trips to and from the mainland.


Savannah

Mass at the Cathedral in Savannah was celebrated by Most Rev. J. Kevin Boland, Bishop of Savannah. Archabbot Douglas was a concelebrant.



visited Saint Vincent in 1996 on the occa-sion of the Archabbey’s 150th anniver-sary.

During his stop in Thailand, Archabbot Douglas met with His Eminence Cardinal Michael Michai Kitbunchu at the Baan

To Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

To Taipei, Taiwan

To Beijing, China

To Tokyo, Japan

To Bangkok, Thailand

To Hong Kong

From.... Saint Vincent Basilica

Mission to Asia

Saint Vincent Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., met with Most Rev. Joseph Ti-Kang, Archbishop of Taipei, Taiwan, during a fall visit to the Saint Vincent Mis-sion in Taiwan. Also pictured is Br. Nicholas Koss, O.S.B., Prior of Wimmer Priory in Taipei, and Acting Dean of the College of Foreign Languages at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei.

Phu Waan Pastoral Training Center in the Archdiocese of Bangkok.

Several ties to Saint Vincent Semi-nary were renewed when the Archabbot visited Vietnam. He was welcomed by Abbot John Vuong Dinh Lamof Phuoc-Son, the Cistercian Monastery, which currently has a seminarian at Saint Vin-

cent, and also by the family of Cong Chi Vu, a seminarian from the Diocese of Savannah, who is also studying at Saint Vincent. Cong’s mother was recuperat-ing from a recent accident.

The Archabbot addressed the mem-bers of the Phuoc-Son community and celebrated the community Mass.

He also attended the meeting of the Benedictine Commission on East Asia, the Philippines and Oceania, which was held in Japan. Among the attendees was Abbot Simon Petro Yi of Waegwan Abbey in Korea (pictured below). A monk of Waegwan Abbey, Father Samuel Kim, is studying at Saint Vincent Seminary.




Above, Archabbot Douglas meets with the President of Fu Jen Uni-versity in Taipei, John Ning-Yuean Lee (seated). Also attending the meeting were (back, from left) Father Louis Gendron, S.J., Vice Pres-ident; Br. Nicholas Koss, O.S.B., Prior of Wimmer Priory in Taipei and Dean of the Foreign Language School at Fu Jen; Father Joseph Wong, Vice President; and Father Michael Kuo, S.V.D., Vice Presi-dent.

In the photo at right, the Archabbot meets with members of the Fu Jen Alumni Association.

At the bottom, right, Archabbot Douglas is pictured with Brother David Ho, O.S.B., at Wimmer Priory in Taiwan. Brother David spent a year at Fu Jen University in Taipei before returning to Saint Vincent College to complete his studies.

Below, Archabbot Douglas met with His Eminence Cardinal Michael Michai Kitbunchu at the Baan Phu Waan Pastoral Training Center in the Archdiocese of Bangkok.



Mission to AsiaAbove, in Vietnam, is the entrance to the Seminary grounds

in the Archdiocese of Ho Chi Minh City. The Archabbot met with Bishop Joseph Thong, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Arch-diocese, below. In the bottom left photo, and the photos in the right-hand column on this page, Archabbot Douglas addressed the members of the Community of Phuoc-Son Abbey and cel-ebrated the Community Mass while there. The monks of the Cistercian Monastery posted for a photo with him, and the Archabbot also observed the “Ora et Labora” or work and prayer, of the monks there, who were working in the rice pad-dies. And in the photo at the bottom, right of this page, the Archabbot visits with Cong Chi Vu, a seminarian from the Dio-cese of Savannah, who is from Vietnam. Cong went back to Vietnam to assist his mother, who was injured in an accident.



Clockwise, from the top, left, photo: Archabbot Douglas meets with Dr. Somsak and Patama Leeswadtrakul; The Archabbot is welcomed to Saint Benedict Catholic Church in Linkou, Taiwan; the Archabbot and Father Paulinus observe the activities of the school children of Saint Benedict Parish; the Archabbot met members of the Saint Benedict Parish Youth Group; The Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand, one of the stops on the fall Mission to Asia, and finally, a photo from his visit to Nu Dan Vien Bien Duc in Vietnam.

Mission to Asia



The rising demands of contempo-rary life and the nature and values of our resolutely secular society have the combined effect of eroding our spiritual lives. It becomes important then to be aware of this effect and to respond by actively nurturing the spiritual life. The experience of a retreat can be a cat-alyst for spiritual renewal and refo-cusing on the true meaning of our earthly existence, according to Brother Hugh Lester, O.S.B., Retreat Director for Saint Vincent Archabbey.

The monks of Saint Vincent Archab-bey have tended to the spiritual needs of Christian men and women for over 150 years and have been involved in retreat ministry since 1913. The Saint Vincent retreats, given annually from late May to July, have drawn thousands of retreatants to Saint Vincent over the years.

The retreat program is staffed pri-marily by the monks of the abbey who serve as retreat masters, spiritual direc-tors, confessors, the program director, and retreat program assistants.

Summer weekend retreats are offered annually for men, women, married cou-ples, oblates of Saint Benedict, and charismatics.

Brother Hugh has announced the 2002 retreat schedule.

There will be six retreats, including men’s three and four-day retreats, a women’s retreat, a retreat for married couples, and retreats on charismatic prayer and Benedictine spirituality.

Beginning the schedule on May 17 to 19, with Benedictine Spirituality, will be retreat master Father Philip Kanfush,

O.S.B. The retreat topic will be “Mod-eling the Medieval Monastics: How to Witness to the Holy Rule in the World Today.” Living according to the Holy Rule of Saint Benedict in

the midst of contemporary culture can pose a sometimes difficult, if not daunt-ing, challenge. See what the lives, writ-ings, and art of four great saints of the monastic tradition can teach about living Benedictine virtues in everyday

2002 Retreats Announcedlife. Treat yourself to a relaxing week-end enjoying the wisdom of Aelred of Rievaulx, Hildegard of Bingen, Bernard of Clairvaux, and Gertrude of Helfta. Each saint has a different lesson to share during this respite from our busy lives. Father Philip is currently the paro-chial vicar at Saint Vincent Basilica Parish, and he has Master of Arts and Master of Divinity degrees from Saint Vincent Seminary. He was the recipient of the American Bible Society Award for excellence in the study of Sacred Scripture in 1999.

Father Nathan Munsch, O.S.B., will conduct the married couples’ retreat

from May 31 to June 2. It is enti-tled “The Righ-teousness of God Through Faith in Christ for All Who Believe.” The Bible speaks of God’s righteousness as a key for under-

standing God’s relationship with us. This retreat is an invitation to look at how your marriage has been molded by God’s righteousness and by your faith in Christ. Special attention will be paid to the Epistle to the Romans. These biblical reflections will nurture the love you find in your marriage by examining how married love is itself a gift from God. Take some time out this summer to relax, pray and enter into God’s pres-ence with your spouse. An instructor in religious studies at Saint Vincent Col-lege, he holds a Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree from Catholic Univer-sity of America, and a Master of Arts degree in Classical Languages from Duquesne University. He completed the doctoral program in Systematic Theol-ogy at Boston College.

The men’s three-day retreat, conducted by Br. Elliott Maloney, O.S.B., will be held from June 7-9. It is called “Jesus’ Urgent Message for Today.” Most people think that Jesus’ message about the end of time refers to a

fiery destruction of all we know. A better understanding of Jesus’ mes-sage reveals that he believed in the possibility of a new world order, the Kingdom of God, that God would bring about in God’s good time. We are still awaiting this Parousia of Jesus as Lord of the world, but there is much that we can do to cooperate with God’s plan in bringing about a world of peace, justice, and love for all humankind. Br. Elliott earned a Licentiate of Sacred Theol-ogy from the Pontifical Atheneum of Sant’ Anselmo, Rome, in 1972, and a Ph. D. in New Testament Studies from Fordham University in 1979. He is pro-fessor of New Testament and Biblical Languages at Saint Vincent Seminary.

Father Mark Gruber, O.S.B., will conduct the June 14-16 retreat on char-ismatic prayer, entitled “Helpless Before God, Helpful to One Another.” In this retreat participants will consider the par-adox of the hum-bled disposition of the soul in God’s presence in con-trast to the same soul’s dignity in the service of others. Christ Crucified and Christ Risen will provide a context for this extended meditation. An associate pro-fessor of Anthropology at Saint Vin-cent College, Father Mark has a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary, and a Master of Arts and a Ph.D. in anthropology from State Uni-versity of New York at Stony Brook. Father Mark has authored four books on spirituality, Wounded by Love: Inti-mations of an Outpouring Heart (1993), Exalted in Glory: Encountering the Risen Christ (1994), Waiting for Dawn: Portents of His Coming (1997) and Thanksgiving and Praise: Dandelions for God (2000).

June 21 to 23 will be the days for the women’s retreat, to be given by Father Donald Raila, O.S.B. “Purity of Heart and Self-Gift to Others: On the Dignity and Vocation of Women,” is the topic. Pope John Paul’s 1988 apostolic letter on the Dignity and Vocation of Women




Br. Brian D. Boosel, O.S.B.

Three Benedictines To Be Ordained To The DiaconateBrother Brian D. Boosel, O.S.B., Br. Thomas P. Curry, O.S.B., and Br. Cajetan P. Homick,

O.S.B., will be ordained to the Diaconate at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 13, by Most Rev. Anthony Bosco, Bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg, in the Archabbey Basilica.

Br. Thomas Curry, O.S.B.

Eight Benedictines To Celebrate Jubilees

Br. Lambert Berens, O.S.B.70 Years, Profession

Br. Miguel Savieto, O.S.B.50 Years, Profession

Br. Placid Cremonese, O.S.B.60 Years, Profession

Rev. Cyprian Constantine, O.S.B.25 Years, Ordination

Rev. Aaron Buzzelli, O.S.B.25 Years, Ordination

Rev. Andrew Campbell, O.S.B.25 years, Profession

Br. Timothy Brown, O.S.B.25 Years, Profession

Br. Cajetan P. Homick, O.S.B.

Rev. Flavian Yelinko, O.S.B.75 Years, Profession

Vocation Booklet

“Listen carefully, my son, to the master’s instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart.” — If you or someone you know is contemplating the monastic life, contact the Archabbey Voca-tion Ofce at 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Penna., 15650-2690, 724-539-9761, ext. 6655, for a free booklet about life as a Saint Vincent Benedictine.



Tribute,Memorial Gifts

To give a tribute or memorial gift, please make a donation to Saint Vin-cent Archabbey in honor of or in memory of a friend, colleague or family member. Donations should be mailed to Mr. Wil-liam Malloy in the Archabbey Devel-opment Office, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Pa., 15650-2690, 724-532-6740. Donors from July 1, 2001, to March 15, 2002, include:

IN HONOR OF:ADELINE AND ART COCCO

Miss Geraldine MichelaREV. CHAD R. FICORILLI, O.S.B.

Mr. and Mrs. Ronald NisselMR. KERTES FOX

David and Rebecca FuchsBROTHER GERARD KLARIC, O.S.B.

Nancy and Tom LennonREV. OMER U. KLINE, O.S.B.

Mr. William T. GasperREV. THOMAS J. KRAM

Mrs. Patricia M. CoghlanGERALDINE CLARE MAHER

Mr. Roger MaherMiss Mary Regina Maher

REV. EDWARD M. MAZICH, O.S.B.Mrs. Alice M. Mazich

REV. FLAVIAN G. YELINKO, O.S.B.Alphonse and Shirley Krieg

IN MEMORY OF:+ANDREW BAKER

Terry and Denise InksKennametal, Inc.Rosemary Kirr James and Sarah KuchererSuzanne J. MahadyRoy and Elaine McCayNutrition, Inc.

+REV. AELRED J. BECK, O.S.B.AnonymousVeronica BartmanLou and Sue BattistellaMr. and Mrs. Scott BeaufaitMr. and Mrs. Charles A. BeckMr. and Mrs. Robert A. Beck and FamilyRuss and Rita Best and FamilyJoseph and Kathleen BoylanLeo and BettyAnn BridgeMr. Alfred F. BriolaMrs. Annette C. BrownfieldCarl and Charlotte BurlasDennis CessarEugene and Shirley CitroneDr. Peter J. CitroneMr. F. Wylly ClarkeMr. and Mrs. George A. Conti, Jr.

Dolores CouchMr. and Mrs. Thomas B. DevlinMrs. Jane DixonNicholas and Tracy DorschJohn DoughertyJo and Bill DzombakAdam Eidemiller, Inc.Eidemiller FamilyMs. Jayne L. EidemillerMr. John EvanickJames FarabaughJulia A. FedorMr. George A. FirmentMr. and Mrs. Samuel A. FolbyMrs. Anna L. GeimerFran GigliottiEdward and Mimi GromekMr. and Mrs. Richard B. GuskiewiczMrs. Margaret Diel HallMr. William N. Hamilton, Jr.Mrs. Dolores P. HannaBob and Lil HerbElizabeth M. JedrzejewskiFrank and Elsie JioioPaul and Patricia KachmarMr. and Mrs. Joseph KinzlerMr. and Mrs. Kenneth KinzlerMary Kinzler and FamilyMr. and Mrs. Robert KinzlerKnights of Columbus, St. Vincent Assembly 918Mrs. Marguerite Koncul and the Koncul Family:Mary AnnMargy and LeeCatherineMartin and KathyDianeTony and MaureenFrank and BrendaJoeHelenaCecilia and GlennMichael and SheilaStephen and CelesteTherese and PatVincent and MicheleMr. William R. KosglowFrank and Marie LaMendolaKaren LehotayMark and Janet LiebRon LiebLeo T. MaherMr. and Mrs. Charles G. Manoli, Sr.Mr. and Mrs. George A. MarcinkoBarbara D. MarkessJohn and Ann MarkovichMr. and Mrs. Robert M. MattockMr. Melvin J. MattyPauline MatuszkyMrs. Emma MeskunasBill MeskunasRoland and Florein Mueller

Paul P. OnderkoJon and Ann PalmerMr. and Mrs. Richard PavicicMr. and Mrs. Anthony J. PesaventoJoseph and Rita RazumBill and Gloria RohallDon and Mary Lou RossiJim, Jo, Maria, and DJ RossiMr. and Mrs. J. B. Rowley, Sr.Ceil SchlosserScott, Suzy, and Emily SmithHal SooseMr. and Mrs. Ron YodanisMr. and Mrs. John B. ZapponeMr. and Mrs. Arthur C. Zitterbart

+BARRY R. BENECCIOBarry and Patricia Beneccio

+ANTHONY BONADIOMrs. Helen Maffei

+REV. ANTHONY J. BURLAS, O.S.B.Ed and Dolores AmmonAnonymousLarry and Ruth AponeMrs. John ArrigonieCarol ArtusoMr. and Mrs. Rudy AusteriKathy BachaLeo and Barbara BachaMrs. Anne C. BordasBernard and Betsy BorzaMr. and Mrs. James BrahoskyMargaret K. BridgeCarl and Charlotte BurlasMr. Philip M. BurlasMr. and Mrs. Thomas BurlasDaune CavalierMr. and Mrs. Kraig J. CawleyFrancie CavadaMargaret CharleyMr. and Mrs. B. Patrick CostelloMrs. Marion G. CronauerMr. and Mrs. Walter Czerpak, Jr.Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. DanksRita B. DaughertyCharles Decker FamilyMr. Ralph DeLucaDarlene M. DemyanMr. and Mrs. William DeSantis and ChristinaMrs. Colleen DiPaulMr. and Mrs. John A. DunnJohn and Carol DurcoMr. and Mrs. Ben FajtHenry and Marie FajtMrs. Helen FidazzoSam and Mary FolbyIrene FoschiaGenevieve A. Gaia and FamilyIda GhristFran GigliottiSara GradisekMr. and Mrs. Ralph E. Graff




and FamilyJoyce and Clem GrossHelen GualaMr. and Mrs. Richard B. GuskiewiczMarcia GuzikDorothy HackerCarm HamerskiMr. William N. Hamilton, Jr.Gary and Linda HelmanMr. and Mrs. Cyril HenryGenevieve JohnsonPatricia M. JoyceJulieMary C. KendiRose and Dwight KintighRobert and Kathleen KnechtelCaroline KocianMichael and Irene KozarJohn Kozinko FamilyJohn and Kiera LallyGertrude LavellaWilliam J. LupinacciCharles and Anita ManoliMr. and Mrs. John MarkulinMr. and Mrs. Donald A. MastroroccoPeter Matje and Christine McKennaBarney and Maureen McArdleRobert and Jeanne McCaverMr. and Mrs. John McFeeleyMrs. Mary F. N. McGinnisPaul and Catherine MerlinoMr. and Mrs. James MessarosRonald A. MinervaMr. Anthony MoschettiJim and Helen MurphyMr. and Mrs. Edward MutnanskyHelen OrrTony PaceJuliet M. PanichellaGinny PanigallBill and Ann PavellMr. and Mrs. Anthony PesaventoJoe and Bernie PevarnikDomenick and Rose PiccininiVince PiccoloMr. and Mrs. Orlando PietropaoliMr. and Mrs. Robert PytlakJayne RadisiLucille Radomski Mr. and Mrs. W. Robert ReddingMr. and Mrs. Carl RinglerMrs. Betty RobertsRev. Edward RobertsMr. and Mrs. Robert RosattiRoskovensky FamilyMr. and Mrs. Nick Roy, Jr.Michael SchlosserCharles M. Seamens

Ed Zendron+REV. CLAIR F. GANNON, O.S.B.

Ms. Denise A. ChontosMiss Mary Ellen FreilCassie GannonPeggy GannonRobert P. Gannon, M.D.Eric GreisingerMr. Leo T. MaherSaint Vincent Senior Citizens

+RICHARD GERARD GAWMs. Mary C. Gaw

+MRS. ANN A. GIGLIOTTIMs. Frances M. Gigliotti

+CHESTER GUZIKMrs. Anne V. Guzik

+VIRGINIA H. HAMILTONMr. William N. Hamilton, Jr.

+ERNEST AND ELLA HARTSHORNDr. Helena R. Hartshorne

+KATHERINE ANASTASTIA HAZAGAGreat GrandchildrenMr. and Mrs. Edward A. GromekMs. Denise HazagaMr. Robert HazagaMr. and Mrs. Robert HazagaMr. and Mrs. Cody JacksonMs. Anita C. KirkpatrickMr. and Mrs. Alan MathewsMr. and Mrs. James R. Wingertzahn

+REV. LAWRENCE H. HILL, O.S.B.Bill DixonFran GigliottiRaymond HillRev. William J. HomolakJim KilpatrickMargie KraftMr. and Mrs. Robert E. RhodyAgnes UrikBrian UrikMs. Patti Lee Young

+PHILIP HUDEKMrs. Helen Hudek

+DR. ALAN R. JACOBDebra Jacob and Sons

Bill and Lil SherryWilliam E. Shopsky FamilyMr. and Mrs. Damon ShutakAl and Linda SimonEileen SmithHelen Marie and Johnny SmithMrs. Antonette Spinelli and MotherMike and Margie Toth Stepic and JenniferMr. and Mrs. Harry G. TompkinsAlex and Jackie Toth Mr. and Mrs. George TutichMarie ValonDomenick and Linda ValoreMrs. Ann VoytkoJean VoytkoRichard and Diane WebbRandy and Marcia Weaver and FamilySally and Ron WhighamWilder & Company, Ltd., P.C.Ms. Dorothy M. YoungMs. Patti Lee YoungMr. and Mrs. Stanley J. YourishMs. Margaret R. YurcovicAmelia Zakour

+ROBERT S. CAREYJohn and Penny Kramer

+FRANCES CARLSONMs. Marilyn J. Cupec

+EVELINA ‘DALE’ CHERRYMr. and Mrs. Jerold P. ConnollyJohn and Patricia DonlonMr. and Mrs. Paul J. HuberRichard and Sally KittingMrs. Dorothy MintusMr. and Mrs. Edward G. NemanicMr. and Mrs. Matt RendulichMs. Gertrude M. ScottErminia E. Vecchio and FamilyMr. and Mrs. John B. ZapponeMr. and Mrs. Arthur C. Zitterbart

+HAROLD T. CRONAUER, SR.Mrs. Marion G. Cronauer

+FRANK CUDNIKMrs. Stella M. Cudnik

+REV. DANIEL B. DIXONMr. and Mrs. Louis R. Tovey

+HENRY DUMMMs. Joan T. Dumm

+REV. AMBROSE G. EBERZ, O.S.B.Mrs. Adeline Feldbauer

+EUGENE FRITZMary Ann Noland GrahamRose M. HollisMr. and Mrs. Donald H. MillerMary and Tom MiscikGreg and Marianne MullerRose OlenchockVirginia PiankaMr. and Mrs. William PiankaMrs. Anna StaschakJohn H. Tristani


(Continued from Page 16 )

Oblates of Saint Benedict are Christian men and women who choose to associate themselves with a Benedictine religious com-munity in order to strengthen their baptismal commitment and enrich their Christian way of life. If you are interested in entering the Oblate Program and committing yourself to this way of life, you are welcome to contact:Director of Oblates, Saint Vincent

Archabbey300 Fraser Purchase Road

Latrobe, PA 15650-2690, 724-532-6600




reflects on the ways in which women discover their value in God’s eyes and share in his own eternal fruitfulness through mother-hood and other vocations of self-giving. This retreat will offer examples of Christian wom-en’s fulfilling their God-given roles and suggest how today’s women can better follow Christ and serve his Church. Currently the Director of Oblates and Director of Mon-astery Music for Saint Vincent Archab-bey, Father Donald received a Master of Arts degree in Scriptural Theology and a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary.

The men’s four-day retreat, “The Pha-raoh of the Oppression,” will be given by Father Mark Gruber, O.S.B., from July 25-28. We will consider the story of Isra-el’s oppression in Egypt as a means of understanding the power of God over the pride of men. In particular, the unnamed king of Egypt who confronts God and Moses will serve to reveal certain char-acteristics of the generally human and typically masculine fallen human nature.

For more information on the retreat program, contact Brother Hugh at 724-532-6600, extension 2139.

Archabbey PublicationsBr. Brian Boosel, O.S.B., directs the order and shipping arm of Arch-

abbey Publications, publisher of the reprint of Flowers in the Desert by Father Demetrius R. Dumm, and of the Saint Vincent Archabbey Gristmill and Brewery, 1854-2000, by Father Omer U. Kline, O.S.B. This year, for the first time, Archabbey Publications, produced a catalogue, not only of its own works, but also of other books, videos and other products produced by members of the Saint Vincent monastic community. During the Christ-mas rush, Br. Brian had to borrow the monastery linen cart to transport the flood of orders to the Saint Vincent Post Office for shipment. Readers of this publication who would like a copy of the Archabbey Publications catalogue can call 724-539-9761, extension 2601, or e-mail [email protected].

Retreats (Continued from Page 14)



+REV. CLARENCE F. KARAWSKY, O.S.B.

Ms. Leonarda KarawskyMs. De Sales Karawsky

+REV. MATTHEW KEBEMr. Frank A. Skrjanc

+REV. JOEL R. LIEB, O.S.B.Dr. and Mrs. Bruce BethkeColleagues of Saint Vincent College Biology DepartmentThomas P. Gessner, M.D.Ed and Cheryl KapelewskiMr. and Mrs. Timothy F. KesselKnights of Columbus, St. Vincent Assembly 918Betty and Scott LiebMr. Robert E. Locke

Mr. Leo T. MaherMr. and Mrs. William J. McGarrityCarey and Suzanne McMonagleMrs. Elizabeth H. ToddBernadette Urban

+ALFRED MAFFEIMrs. Helen Maffei

+CHARLES W. MARTINSaint Vincent Basilica

+JACK A. MERLINOBrian Urik

+MARY JANE PFALLERMrs. Jean Hammer

+JOSEPH E. PFIESTER, SR.Barbara and Joseph E. Pfiester, Jr.

+REV. EMERIC J. PFIESTER, O.S.B.Mr. Francis X. Abbott

+DENNIS GEORGE PUSHICBarry and Patricia Beneccio

+REV. EMMERAN A. RETTGER, O.S.B.Michael, Kathleen, and Ryan Lecker

+MICHAEL B. ROBB, JR.Molly and Ken Shimko

+REV. THOMAS M. RODGERSMarcia Guzik

+JOSEPH J. ROTH Mrs. Edith Sarneso

+REV. MELVIN C. RUPPRECHT, O.S.B.Mr. John C. Rapa

+MARY C. SELISCecilia Selis Smith, Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren

+MAX AND ESTHER SESTILIMr. Ronald J. Sestili

+SYLVIA STAICERMr. Frank Staicer

+MRS. ELEANOR SUTKOWSKIMrs. Genevieve Grochmal

+REV. REMIGIUS BERNARD VEROSTKO, O.S.B.

Mr. and Mrs. Donald S. Pawlak+REV. JOHN ANTHONY VOGEL

Paul and Daphne Toomey+ARTHUR C. ZITTERBART, JR.

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur C. Zitterbart



Community gave this couple great satisfaction. And the work of the Benedictines will benefit for years to come.

Don’t have a “sizable stock portfo-lio”? Remember Saint Vincent Arch-abbey in your will. Bequests to Saint Vincent, the most prevalent form of planned giving, have been a great help over the years. No one is too young, too old, too rich, or too poor to have a sound plan, in the form of a will, for the final distribution of his or her property. A bequest to Saint Vin-cent Archabbey may help to reduce your federal estate-tax liability.

These are just two of virtually limit-less possibilities to make a charitable gift to Saint Vincent Archabbey that also benefits the donor. Please contact Bill Malloy in the Archabbey Devel-opment Office at (724)532-6740 to discuss the planned giving method that best fits your situation.

Mr. William P. MalloyDirector of DevelopmentSaint Vincent Archabbey

300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA 15650-2690,

Phone: 724-532-6740E-mail: wmalloy@ stvincent.edu.

Development Corner: Planned Giving

William MalloyDirector of Development

Yes, I would like to make a gift.

$50 $100 $500 $1000 Other

My company may match my gift. Enclosed is the form.

Name

Address

City State

Zip Phone

Make checks payable to Saint Vincent Archabbey

Today, with changing patterns of wealth and tax laws, charitable giving and tax implications are often linked – and rightly so. Knowledge of tax laws and thoughtful planning may enable a person of modest means to make a gift they never thought possible. Planned giving is the pro-cess by which a charitable desire is guided by financial, and sometimes estate planning, considerations.

Gifts to Saint Vincent Archabbey fall into either of two broad catego-ries: outright or deferred. A yearly donation of cash in response to the Benedictine Annual Appeal is a good example of an outright gift. The establishment of a charitable gift annuity is a deferred gift because, although the donor makes the gift now, it cannot be used by the Archabbey until some future date.

Through the years, the greatest number of gifts to Saint Vincent Archabbey have been outright ones, but the typical deferred gift has usually been larger, especially when tax benefits are calculated.

In 1999, for example, a married couple with a strong appreciation of the educational work of the Benedictine Community at Saint Vincent College had reached retirement age with a sizable stock portfo-lio. Unfortunately, as with many stock portfolios held for a long term, most of the value was accumulated through a rise in the value of the underlying stocks and was therefore subject to capital gains tax. The couple was reevaluating their estate. While they had a strong desire to provide financial support for schol-arship assistance, the husband’s first priority was the care and financial support of his wife. After consulta-tion with his accountant and attorney, they decided to establish a Charitable Gift Annuity for the benefit of the students of Saint Vincent. The husband deter-mined that he could provide for both his family and Saint Vincent, while at the same time lowering his capital gain tax burden. In fact, their gift to Saint Vin-cent earned them a substantial charitable tax deduc-tion! And the annual payment that they will receive for the rest of their lives is far in excess of the dividends their stocks were yielding. Making a gift to benefit the missionary work of the Benedictine



Fr. Flavian Yelinko, O.S.B.

Aerial photo of the Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica, taken in the fall of 2001 by Bill Metzger.

1945 to 1950. As pastor there he over-saw the electrification of tower clock in the church and the bell ringers in the school, the excavation of the school basement for the cafeteria, and the ren-ovations of the church, as well as addi-tion of a church social hall. He also started a Cemetery Association there.

In 1950, he was named associate pastor of St. Bruno Parish, South Greensburg. While pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Youngstown from 1951 to 1961, Fr. Flavian oversaw construc-tion of the school there. he was then sent to serve as pastor of Queen of the World Parish, Saint Marys, from 1961 to 1965, when the rectory was remodeled and new classrooms were added to the school there. As pastor of Saint Greg-ory Parish, Virginia Beach, from 1965 to 1967, he was responsible for teh addition to the school there. Then he moved to Saint John’s Parish and Mis-sion in New Germany from 1967 to 1978, where he supervised remodeling of the church.

Fr. Flavian retired on August 1, 1978, and returned to Saint Vincent. Follow-ing his retirement the former librarian worked to establish the archives for the Seminary and set up an alphabetical list of all students who attended the Semi-nary. At the time all of the records were in chronological order, which made it dif-ficult to find anything unless the person doing the search knew what year a stu-dent had graduated.

“It took me three years, working seven days a week, but I loved it,” Fr. Flavian said.

In addition to his travels around the country in various pastorates, Fr. Fla-vian did graduate work at the Catholic University in Washington D.C. after obtaining his master’s degree from Saint Vincent Seminary. He has also had the opportunity to travel with his Benedic-tine confreres to Rome, witnessing the canonization of Mother Seton, and to the Holy Land, at a time when Fr. Patrick Cronauer, O.S.B., and Fr. Stanley Mar-kiewicz, O.S.B., were assigned there.

Fr. Flavian continues to be a vital part of the Saint Vincent Benedictine com-munity, both for his present-day inter-actions with his confreres, and with his stories and recollections of a Saint Vincent very different than the one of today.

job to put them together and fit them in this room. You have until the opening day of school to get this all together,” Fr. Flavian said.

Somehow he managed, instituting the first “check-out” procedure for books, which didn’t go over well with students and monks who had been used to taking whatever book they wanted. He also catalogued the books by the Dewey Decimal System, got tables and chairs for the library (which had never had them), and used his ingenuity to get funding to buy books for the library. When he ran into trouble getting money budgeted for new books, it would just so happen that some Benedictine pro-fessors he knew began making reading assignments for books on Fr. Flavian’s “wish list.”

He tried starting an interlibrary loan program with the Carnegie Library in Pittsburgh, but at the time “they wouldn’t bother with small potatoes.” But the Saint Vincent Library’s holdings were

classified in Washington, D.C., with the Library of Congress, and one day the Carnegie found it needed to borrow a book that wasn’t in its collection. A call to the Library of Congress found it to be in the Saint Vincent collection — in fact, Fr. Flavian noted, “we had two copies of it.” By the time Fr. Flavian was done, the Carnegie was allowed to borrow the book and Saint Vincent had established its interlibrary loan program with the Pittsburgh library.

After ten years of library work at Saint Vincent, Fr. Flavian began a series of pastoral assignments. He was assistant pastor pro tem at Fourteen Holy Martyrs Parish, Baltimore, Maryland (1935), and at Saint Marys Parish in Saint Marys in 1936. He became associate pastor of Saint Marys Parish, Erie, in 1937, before moving to Saint Boniface Parish in Pittsburgh from 1938 to 1939, then St. Bernard Parish in Hastings from 1940-1942. He received his first pas-torate at St. Lawrence Parish from 1943-1944, then served as pastor of St. Benedict Parish in Carrolltown from




Monastery Plays Host to Students

from Across the U.S.,Korea, Canada,India, Vietnam,

Africa The monastery at Saint Vincent Archab-

bey plays host to an international commu-nity of Benedictines and men from other religious orders who are studying at Saint Vincent Seminary. In this photo from the 2001-2002 academic year are, front row, from left, Father Kevin Dominik, Seminary Dean of Students; Father Cyprian Con-stantine, O.S.B., Acting Academic Dean; Father Kurt Belsole, O.S.B., Seminary Rector and Father William Fay, Seminary Vice Rector. In the second row are, from left, Br. Anthony Pham, O. Cist., of Phuoc Son Abbey, Vietnam; Br. Peter N. Ray-appan, O.S.B., Asirvanam Benedictine Monastery, Bangalore, India; Br. Isaac Camacho, O.S.B. of Saint Leo Abbey in Florida; Br. Michael Calhoun, O.S.B., Saint Bede Abbey, Peru, Illinois. In the third row are, from left, John-Paul Otanwa, of the Via Christi Society, Makurdi Diocese, Nigeria; Rev. Samuel Kim, O.S.B., Waegwan Abbey, Republic of South Korea; Br. George Augustine, O.S.B., Asirvanam Benedictine Monastery. In the fourth row are, from left, Br. Thomas Curry, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey; Br. Gabriel Landis, O.S.B., Saint Benedict’s Abbey, Atchison, Kansas; Br. Mario Parisi, Saint Andrew Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio; Br. Gregory Montagna, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey; and Br. Paul Paproski, O.S.B., Saint Peter’s Abbey, Muenster, Saskatchewan, Canada. In the back row are, from left, Br. Mark Floreanini, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey; Br. Boni-face Hicks, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey; Br. Brian Boosel, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey; Br. Mark Purcell, O.S.B.,Mary Mother of the Church Abbey, Richmond, Virginia; Br. Gregory Gresko, O.S.B., Mary Mother of the Church Abbey; Samuel Odeh, Via Christi Society, Makurdi Diocese, Nigeria.

Gristmill Featured on Kitchen Tour

The Saint Vincent Gristmill was fea-tured as one of eight “kitchens” on “The Art in the Kitchen Tasting Tour,” held this fall. The event was sponsored by the Women’s Committee of the Westmore-land Museum of American Art in Greens-burg, and the recipes for treats found on the tour were published in the “Art in the Kitchen Cookbook.” Bread baked with Saint Vincent flour ground at the mill was served during the kitchen stop, as was Panzanella Salad.

Brother Maurus Mount, a novice at the Archabbey, was pictured pouring ground flour into a flour bag in the Greensburg Tribune-Review, which fea-tured the kitchen tours in an October 1 article.

New ConstructionConstruction continues on the new freshman residence hall on the Saint Vincent Col-

lege campus. The facility will be open in August of 2002 and will provide incoming fresh-men with state-of-the-art information technology access in every room. In addition to the construction, Saint Vincent College is undergoing a major reorganization of its academic programs, which will see the programs organized under four major schools.



Father Lawrence Hill, O.S.B.

The Rev. Lawrence Henry Hill, O.S.B., 64, a monk of Saint Vincent Archabbey, died Friday, Nov. 9, 2001.

Father Lawrence was born May 4, 1937, in Tarentum, a son of the late Edward and Helen (Burger) Hill and was one of six children.

He received a bachelor of arts from Saint Vincent College in 1961 and a master of divinity degree from Saint Vin-cent Seminary in 1965. He also earned several advanced degrees, including a master of library science from the Uni-versity of Pittsburgh and master of edu-cation in counseling from Duquesne University.

He had worked since 1993 as a ther-apist at Westmoreland Gateway Reha-bilitation Center and was credentialed as a certified addictions counselor in 1997.

Father Lawrence entered Saint Vin-cent Archabbey in 1958, making simple profession of vows July 2, 1959, and solemn profession of vows July 11, 1962. He was ordained a priest May 22, 1965.

He held several positions in the Saint Vincent Library, including acting direc-tor of libraries from 1968-69 and taught on the faculty of Saint Vincent College and Seminary. He also served on many

Rev. Lawrence Hill, O.S.B.

Obituaries

Rev. Anthony Burlas, O.S.B.

Father Anthony Burlas, O.S.B.

The Rev. Anthony Burlas, O.S.B., 74, a monk of Saint Vincent Archabbey, died Monday, January 21, 2002.

Father Anthony was born March 18, 1927, in Pleasant Unity, one of nine children of the late John Anthony and Bertha (Nessler) Burlas.

He attended Immaculate Conception Parochial School in Irwin and Greens-burg High School. He received a bach-elor of science degree in accounting from Saint Vincent College in 1951 and a master of science degree in com-merce from St. Louis University in 1962. He also received a master of divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary in 1989.

Father Anthony made simple profes-sion of vows at Saint Vincent Arch-abbey on July 2, 1952, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1955. He was ordained a priest on May 31, 1958.

Father Anthony worked mostly in the monastic community’s educational apostolates. He was an instructor in religion at Saint Vincent Preparatory School and a prefect and an instructor in accounting at the college. He served as an associate professor and chair of the Business Administration department from 1965 to 1976, and in 1992 he was recognized by the Institute of Manage-ment Accountants for 30 years of ser-vice.

He became an honorary member of Delta Mu Delta, the national honor soci-ety in business administration, in 1998.

From 1977 until his death, he was also pastor of St. Mary Parish, Forbes Road.

Father Anthony was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, John Lewis.

He is survived by five brothers, Regis of Ponte Vedra, Fla., Donald of Murrys-ville, Philip of Greensburg, Thomas of South Greensburg and Carl of Latrobe, and two sisters, Marie Fajt and Rita Daugherty, both of Greensburg.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Benedictine Health and Welfare Fund at Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA 15650-2690.

college committees and boards.Father Lawrence was a member of

the board of directors of the American Theological Library Association and the Westmoreland County Historical Soci-ety. He belonged to a number of pro-fessional organizations and has been listed in such directories as American Catholic Who’s Who.

In addition to his parents, he was pre-ceded in death by two sisters, Betty Womack and Martha Marie, and two brothers, Glenn and John.

He is survived by a brother, Ray-mond, of Brackenridge.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Benedictine Health and Welfare Fund at Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA 15650-2690.


Father Aelred Beck, O.S.B.

The Rev. Aelred J. Beck, O.S.B., a monk of Saint Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, died Monday, February 25. He was 79 years old.

Father Aelred was born on Septem-ber 10, 1922, in Pittsburgh, the son of the late Eugene and Amelia (Geimer) Beck, and was one of six children. He attended Saint Boniface Parochial School in Pittsburgh, and Saint Vincent Preparatory School in Latrobe, Penn-sylvania. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Saint Vincent College in 1945 and a master of arts degree from Saint Vincent Seminary in 1954. He also received a master of education

Rev. Aelred J. Beck, O.S.B.

Obituariesdegree from the University of Pittsburgh in 1954, and did advanced study at Harvard University’s Institute of College Administrators.

Father Aelred entered the Saint Vin-cent monastic community in 1942, making simple profession of vows on July 2, 1943, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1946. He was ordained a priest on June 13, 1948.

Father Aelred worked mainly in the Saint Vincent educational apostolates, beginning as a prefect and teacher in the preparatory school and the college. In 1954, at 32 years of age, he was named dean of the college. He held that position for eleven years, overseeing one of the college’s largest increases in student enrollment and the initiation of several new academic programs. In 1965 he was appointed Director of Development and Alumni. In that posi-tion he helped to establish several new alumni chapters in the United States and to design an alumni directory and quarterly alumni magazine. In comment-ing on Father Aelred’s service, Saint Vincent College President James Will said, “Father Aelred holds a special place in the history of Saint Vincent Col-lege. He served the College for many years as a Professor of English, Aca-demic Dean — one of the youngest academic dean’s in the country at that time — and finally as Director of Devel-

Name

Address

City State

Zip Phone

E-Mail

A Life of ServiceThe Benedictine Community of Saint Vincent has about 200 monks who devote their lives to serving the needs of people through

a wide variety of pastoral, educational, and missionary works, both at Saint Vincent and throughout the world. While the older monks remain active well past retirement age, they face the same nancial hardships that other

Yes, Archabbot Douglas, I would like to help these men of God face the needs of their retirement years. Enclosed is my gift of: $50 $100 $500 $1000 Other

My company matched my gift. Enclosed is the form.

opment and Alumni, leading one of our first major fund raising campaigns. He was an innovator who introduced many new programs to the College that helped students achieve their educa-tional goals. He was also a great sto-ryteller who always had an interesting story or joke appropriate for any occa-sion. We honored Father Aelred in 1985 with a Distinguished Alumnus Award. He will be greatly missed by the entire Saint Vincent College family.”

From 1967 to 1977 Father Aelred served at Benedictine Military High School in Savannah, Georgia. He was prior of the monastery and headmaster of the school, and under his leadership the size of the student body nearly dou-bled.

In 1977 Father Aelred was appointed pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Youngstown, Pennsylvania. He held this position until 1998, when he was named senior priest.

In addition to his parents, Father Aelred is preceded in death by a brother, Eugene. He is survived by two brothers, Charles of Allison Park, and Robert of Ingomar; and two sisters, Rita Best of Wexford, and Mary Kinzler of Orlando.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Benedictine Health and Welfare Fund at Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Penn-sylvania 15650-2690.

retirees do — rising health care costs and increasing living expenses. The monks have neither Social Security nor third-party health care benets. The Monastery Health Care and Retirement Fund provides older priests and brothers the care they so richly deserve for their many years of service to the people of God.

Make checks payable to Saint Vincent Archabbey

Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser

Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA 15650-2690. Gifts are tax-deductible.

SaintVincentArchabbey300FraserPurchaseRoadLatrobe,PA15650-2690

724-539-9761http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/

AddressServiceRequested

TheFirstBenedictineMonasteryintheUnitedStates,Foundedin1846

NON-PROFITORGANIZATIONU.S. POSTAGE

PAID PERMIT NO. 110

SaintVincentArchabbey HearttoHeartWinter2002

24

His Eminence Cardinal Paul Shan will come to the United States for commencement exercises at Saint Vincent College on Saturday, May 11.

The Cardinal is the Chan-cellor of Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan and will come to Saint Vincent with Presi-dent Lee of Fu Jen to confer an h o n o r a r y

doctorate on Father John Murtha, O.S.B., the former President of Saint Vincent College, who served for many years as a faculty member in the history department at Fu Jen Uni-versity in Taipei. Cardinal Shan will receive an honorary doctorate from Saint Vincent College during the commencement exercises in May.

Cardinal Paul ShanTo Receive

Honorary Degree

SpringBreakinHaitiFr. Fred Byrne, O.S.B., Saint Vincent College Campus Minister, took a group of

students to Haiti over spring break. The students assisted with the grassroots pro-grams inspired by the Little Brothers and Sisters of the Incarnation in the Pandias-sou community. In addition to working on the projects of the village, the students also shared in the culture, faith and love of the Pandiassou community. Above, left, students. The photos above show the students interacting with the Pandiassou com-munity. In the photo at right, Fr. Fred is in the blue shirt in the center.

Heart to Heart Winter/Spring 2002

Documents

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