Fr. Anthony D’Angelo, SDB (1923-2021)
Fr. Anthony S. D’Angelo, SDB, died on September 22, at James A. Haley Veteran’s Hospital in Tampa. At 98 years of age, he was the 2d-oldest Salesian in the province.
Fr.
Tony was a member of the Tampa Salesian community, residing at St. Philip the
Apostle Residence since 2018. He was a professed Salesian for 64 years and a
priest for 54 years.
Tony
was born to Mariano and Catherine Cannistra D’Angelo on July 17, 1923, in New
York City; on his birth certificate, he’s Antonino. But he was baptized Antonio
Santo D’Angelo in October at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Coatesville, Pa.
At age ten he was confirmed at our parish of Mary Help of Christians in
Manhattan.
Tony
attended a Manhattan trade school and learned to be a butcher. He got some jobs
in grocery store meat departments before he was drafted into the Army in 1942.
Tony
served in the U.S. Army during World War II, mostly in the European Theater,
according to his brother Sal. He progressed with the Allied advance from
England through France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, doing supply services (hauling
food, gas, and ammunition to the front) and, Sal thinks, also guarding German
POWs (maybe on return trips). When Germany surrendered, he was transferred to
the Philippines, apparently to prepare for the invasion of Japan that didn’t
happen. He returned to the U.S. and was discharged in 1946.
In
his senior years Fr. Tony was brought to Washington on “Honor Flights,” a
veterans program in tribute to their WWII service—once from Birmingham and once
from New Rochelle. He enjoyed these
greatly.
From
Sal D’Angelo we learn that on returning home, Tony went back to the butcher’s
trade in a store his mother had opened. He enjoyed taking his kid brother (18 years
his junior) to Yankee games and other sporting events. After some years, he found a job at the Post
Office. When he began to think about becoming a priest, he went to consult the Salesian
pastor at Mary Help of Christians on East 12th Street. That would have been Fr. Anthony Bregolato. According to Sal, the priest told Tony that
since he worked well with kids, he should become a Salesian. So Tony applied to the Sons of Mary program
at Don Bosco Seminary in Newton, N.J.
Tony
entered the seminary in January 1955. In
September 1956 he began novitiate in Newton and made his first profession on
September 8, 1957. The 1957 elenco lists 39 novices (the year probably began
with more), including the future Bros. John Andres, Charles Bryson, Jerome
Cincotta, George Marquis, Anthony Matse, William Regner, Joseph Reza, and
Joseph Tortorici and Frs. Leo Baysinger, Paul Bedard, Gerard Bonjean, Bernard
Dabbene, James Naughton, and Charles Ruloph. It was quite a class!
Bro.
Tony graduated from Don Bosco College with a B.A. in philosophy in 1960 and was
dispatched to Mary Help of Christians School in Tampa for practical training (1960-1963),
where all but one or two of the ca. 140 boys were boarders. Bro. Tony taught
grades 5-8; there were also 9th graders, including your humble blogger (1962-1963),
but he didn’t teach us. In addition, like the other “clerics,” he assisted in
the dining room and the 120-bed dormitory and at recreation and daily chores.
He also was on the summer camp staff.
Bro.
Tony studied theology at Bollengo, near Ivrea, Italy, from 1963 to 1967 and was
ordained in Ivrea on March 18, 1967.
As
a priest, Fr. Tony served six years as guidance counselor at Salesian High
School in New Rochelle, N.Y. (1973-1979), and in fact was licensed as a school
psychologist in New York. He earned an M.A. in pastoral counseling at Iona
College, New Rochelle, in 1971, followed by a doctorate from Fordham University
in 1976.
But
most of Fr. Tony’s priestly ministry was in parishes: as assistant pastor at
Holy Rosary in Port Chester, N.Y. (1967-1971), Mary Help of Christians in
Manhattan (1971-1973, 1983-1996), St. Ann in Manhattan (1981-1983), and Holy
Rosary in Birmingham, Ala. (1997-2014). He was pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle
Parish in Harlem, N.Y., from 1979 to 1981. He was a hospital chaplain in
Manhattan for 13 years (1983-1996); according to his brother Sal, that was
mainly at Cabrini and Beth Israel hospitals. He served at Sacred Heart Retreat
Center in Ipswich, Mass., for one year (1996-1997).
While he was assigned to Port Chester, he was appointed to the regional board of directors of the Port Chester Citizens Anti-Poverty Association, being cited as “well liked in our community and relating well to all people.”
In
Birmingham Fr. Tony was noted as a “fiery priest from New York” who supported
civil rights. He was, of course, only continuing what he’d been doing for years
in New York City. He was active in the pro-life movement, as well. He wrote
frequent guest columns for One Voice, Birmingham’s diocesan newspaper,
usually on prayer or concern for the needy. On at least one occasion (August
26, 2007) he wrote a long opinion piece for the Birmingham News
protesting the poverty in and official neglect of Mark’s Village, a “project”
adjacent to Holy Rosary Church.
Before
he moved South, he wrote occasional letters to the editor of Catholic New
York, e.g., on June 8, 1995, protesting that boxing is immoral and the
following week encouraging prayer.
Privately,
he wrote letters of prayerful support for the rector major, Fr. Juan Vecchi,
when he was suffering from cancer in 2000 and 2002, to which Fr. Pascual
Chavez, still regional councilor, responded, also with appreciation for the
pastoral work going on in Birmingham. In 2005 Fr. Chavez, by then rector major,
thanked Fr. Tony for condolences after his father’s death.
Approaching
his 50th anniversary of profession and 40th of ordination in 2007, once again
he expressed his commitment to prayer. He also displayed some of his typical
humor: when people suggested he consider retiring, he wrote, “I retire every
night, and with the grace of the Lord come out of retirement every morning at
5:30….”
At
age 91 Fr. Tony finally retired to the provincial house in New Rochelle in
2014. As his health weakened, he transferred to the assisted living home in
Tampa in 2018.
Fr. Bill Keane, his director in New Rochelle, pays this tribute to Fr. Tony: “I certainly admired his perseverance and his friendliness with people. I also remember his coyly getting out his opinion on some matters. When I left the provincial house, he did not appreciate a couple of decisions [I had made], but when I visited Tampa a couple of years ago, he forgot about those and was friendly. His conversations and his experiences were very interesting when he spoke about them.”
Fr. Tony is survived by his younger brother Sal
(wife Joyce) of New Jersey and 13 nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his
sisters Mary and Josie.
Fr. Tony as a hospital
chaplain, possibly in the 1980s, from the Communications Office files.
FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS
Mary Help of Christians
Church
6400 East Chelsea Street
Tampa, Florida 33610
Visitation: Wednesday, September 29,
5:30 – 8:00 p.m.
Mass: Thursday, September 30, 10:00 a.m.
Marian Shrine Chapel
174 Filors Lane
Stony Point, New York 10980
Visitation: Friday, October 1, 2:00 p.m.
Mass: Friday,
October 1, 7:00
p.m.
Salesian Cemetery
3 Craigville Road 10924
Goshen, New York
Burial: Saturday, October 2,
10:30 a.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment