Yesterday, I had a chance to visit Fr. Joe Detig, SVD, my English literature teacher and Dean of Arts and Sciences at Divine Word University Tacloban some 30 years ago! In 1977 he returned to the U.S. from the Philippines. Turning 80 in May this year, he is now in Techny, Illinois in community with the elderly SVDs after staying in the retirement homes in St. Louis, Missouri and in Bordentown NJ. Before retirement, he served the Society in the US in different capacities: vocation director, provincial superior, and parish priest in Lafayette and in Jeanerette, Louisiana. In 2013, he celebrated his 50th year as a missionary. Although with Parkinsons, he hasnt lost his engaging personality and signature booming laughter, he wears no hearing aid, and with a 20/20 vision (after his cataract surgery a few weeks ago). I was impressed with his memory recall of names of DWU faculty, especially of the feisty women of the English Department who were a group to reckon with in his MA literature classes. Asked if he had tamed them, he retorted, No, they tamed me! He toured us around the house - to his room where he enjoys watching movies on his flat screen (a movie buff to the hilt, he has always been!), the chapel, the dining room. I had a lovely visit which he too much appreciated. Joe Detig is one person to whom I owe a lot of gratitude for my personal and professional growth.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 00:43:30 +0000
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