Some notable June events that took place around Holy Name Province are listed below.
One Year Ago
June 2-10, 2012 — Paul O’Keeffe, OFM, of Maryland, and Christopher VanHaight, OFM, of New Jersey, participated in the Order’s Chapter of Mats of Young Friars Minor, held in Guadalajara, Mexico.
June 10-17, 2012 — St. Bonaventure University in Allegany, N.Y., hosted a historic gathering of Poor Clare nuns from around the world who came together to celebrate the 800th anniversary of their founding.
June 13, 2012 — St. Anthony Shrine in Boston celebrated its 65th anniversary along with the feast of St. Anthony of Padua. Events included a Mass, special meals, and a presentation by Provincial Vicar and historian Dominic Monti, OFM, about the history of HNP friars in the Downtown Crossing area of Boston.
June 22, 2012 — St. Anthony of Padua School in Butler, N.J., announced its closing after facing declining enrollment and financial challenges. (Holy Name School in New York City announced its closing earlier this year.)
Five Years Ago
June 7, 2008 — The Filipino faith community at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in New York City commemorated its 25th anniversary with a Mass celebrated by then-pastor Jerome Massimino, OFM, who was assisted by Alcuin Coyle, OFM, and Alan Thomas, OFM. Julian Jagudilla, OFM, gave the homily. (The ministry is planning a 30th anniversary celebration this month, according to the parish bulletin.)
June 29, 2008 — Friars and friends of Holy Cross Parish in the Bronx, N.Y., held a farewell celebration to mark the transition of church leadership from the Province to the Archdiocese of New York. (One year later, a Bronx neighborhood street was named for the Franciscans.)
June 29, 2008 — The Pauline Year, also known as the Year of Paul, began as part of the commemoration of the 2,000th anniversary of the birth of the Apostle Paul. (This year, the Catholic Church is celebrating the Year of Faith, as declared by Pope Benedict XVI in an invitation to “an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Savior of the world.”)
10 Years Ago
June 22, 2003 — Mark Reamer, OFM, returned to the pulpit following six months service as a chaplain to sailors and Marines serving in Kuwait and Iraq during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Mark, a reserve Navy chaplain, was activated for service in January 2003. (In 2005, he was assigned pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Raleigh, N.C.)
20 Years Ago
June 5, 1993 — Thomas Conway, OFM, Henry Fulmer, OFM, Francis Kim, OFM, Patrick Tuttle, OFM, and Jud Weiksnar, OFM, professed solemn vows at St. Francis of Assisi Church on West 31st Street in New York City.
30 Years Ago
June 15, 1983 — After Franciscan Mountain Retreat, Inc., was formed, Daniel Hurley, OFM, and Daniel Riley, OFM, took up residence in Collins Hall, East Union Street, Allegany, N.Y. From this location, the friars invited people to drop in for prayer, reflection and visiting while a search was made for a suitable place for a mountain retreat. (The Franciscan Mountain Retreat, Inc., purchased in the fall of 1984 the property in West Clarkesville that is the current home of Mt. Irenaeus.)
50 Years Ago
June 11, 1963 — Celsus Wheeler, OFM, superior of the Bolivian Foundation, and Bishop Thomas Manning, OFM, led a dedication ceremony and Mass for the blessing of the new parochial school, San Francisco de Asís, in Sorata, Bolivia. The new school accommodated 300 to 400 students as well as the convent for the Spanish Dominican Sisters.
— Compiled by Maria Hayes