Attending grade school in Queens NY, I was taught by the Sisters of St. Dominic of Amityville. I never really knew there were teaching Brothers until I began high school at Bishop Loughlin in 1951. For my first Religion assignment there I read a book entitled Master of Mischief Makers, which detailed the life of St. John Baptist de La Salle. When I completed the book, I decided I wanted to follow his example.
When I graduated, I entered the Novitiate for training as a Brother. After vows and attending Catholic University of America, God continued to direct my footsteps. I began my teaching mission at Bishop Bradley High School in Manchester NH. I was very happy to be of service teaching the boys and even tutoring some family members. God was taking over and I was on my way!
A few years later, I was part of a new venture for the Christian Brothers. We opened St. Bernard Boy’s High School—and God kept moving me along. Other new ventures came for me, and in 1972 I became Executive Director of Ocean Tides School in Narragansett RI—a place I fell in love with! I was blessed to work with these boys who needed so much guidance, as well as their families. I developed special relationships with other Lasallians, probation workers, teachers, police officers, judges, and Ocean Tides staff members. God continued to reveal to me how my life as a Brother would allow me to follow the ways of St. John Baptist de La Salle as a devoted servant. I must admit that I may have at times become a bit of a mischief-maker myself!
After 45 rewarding years at Ocean Tides, I retired in Narragansett. I am near friends, family, and former colleagues. God and St. La Salle have certainly given me a blessed life. I hope that some younger men and women will choose to follow God’s call, too.