A Tale of Two Titles
Dear Friends,
May God bless us as spring turns to summer!
Spring is a fairly long and lovely season in St. Louis, though, southerner that I am, I made it even longer by spending the late winter visiting Vincentian houses and apostolates in Texas and Louisiana, which warmed-up sooner than Missouri.
As you may know, I have two titles: Visitor and Provincial Superior. They are interchangeable, though, depending upon what I am doing one makes more sense than the other.
As the title suggests, a Visitor visits. That is a large part of my job. Every other year I am expected to conduct a formal visitation of each house in the province. A visitation includes an extended conversation with each man assigned to the house as well as meetings with all of the men of the house together.
Dear Father Ward
Saint Vincent DePaul wrote more than 26,000 letters in his lifetime. Through these letters he helped early Vincentians, Daughters of Charity, and many others to remain focused on their mission and grow in holiness.
Long before telephone calls were possible and transportation was slow (by our standards) he managed the complex system of people and organizations engaged in his holy mission through frequent letters.
Celebrating with Special Friends
At a special ceremony on May 24, 2011, Lauretta Crouse, of St. Louis, was honored as an Affiliate of the Vincentian community and thereby joined the ranks of a special corps of Vincentian supporters who have demonstrated extraordinary commitment to the principles of St. Vincent.
Our Jubilarians:
Different Ministries United in the Eucharist
A jubilee is a special occasion celebrating a milestone anniversary. We are blessed to have three Vincentians celebrating jubilee anniversaries this year, and another six celebrating other milestones. We are grateful for their devotion to the mission of St. Vincent de Paul and their contributions to the Vincentian community.
When meeting a priest for the first time, many people ask, “What parish do you work in, Father?” It is a reasonable question given that most people encounter priests in parishes. However, the three jubilarians with whom we celebrate this year have very different answers to that question, none of which includes the name of a parish.
Obituary: Father Joseph Vincent Haley, CM
The Reverend Joseph Vincent Haley, CM, a member of the Vincentian community for 65 years, 10 months and 28 days, entered into eternal life on April 28, 2011. He was born in LaSalle, Illinois, on August 29, 1927, to Joseph G. and Willa Daley Haley.
Fr. Haley entered the Congregation at St. Mary’s of the Barrens, where he spent the next nine years preparing for vows and ordination to the priesthood. He was ordained on May 29, 1954. After ordination, Fr. Haley went on to earn two Master’s degrees, one in 1956 in Latin and Greek at The Catholic University of America and another in 1968 at DePaul University in Guidance and Counseling.
Obituary: Father Edward Hartrick Sullivan, CM
The Reverend Edward Hartrick Sullivan, CM, entered into eternal life on May 22, 2011. His last assignment was as an Apostle of Prayer at Apostle of Charity Residence on the campus of St. Mary’s of the Barrens in Perryville, Missouri.
Fr. Sullivan, also known as “Sully” and “Hartrick,” had been a Vincentian for 74 years, 8 months, and 15 days at the time of his death. He was born in San Francisco on January 28, 1920, to Letitia Hartrick and Celestine Sullivan. He had a sister, Marianne Sullivan Jennings and a half-brother, Celestine J. Sullivan, Jr., both of whom preceded him in death. He is survived by two nephews, Christoper Jennings of Eagon, Minnesota and Dennis Sullivan of Eaton, New Hampshire, and one niece, Elizabeth Lilly, of Los Altos, California.
The Vincentian is published bimonthly by the Western Province of the Congregation of the Mission, the Vincentian Priests and Brothers, to promote the apostolic works of its members and those of the larger Vincentian Family.
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