U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current
Sister Mary Basil Fritz, OSF
Sister Mary Basil Fritz, 90, died on Dec. 31, 2002, in Olean General Hospital.
The former Doris Fritz was born in Harveyville, Pa., and professed her final vows in the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany in 1942. For 46 years she taught in Jamaica, West Indies.
Survivors include her sisters, Clare Tucker, Rita Abbot and Anna Eckman, and her brothers, Daniel and John.
A funeral Mass was celebrated on Jan. 4, 2003, in the Chapel of St. Elizabeth Motherhouse. Interment was in St. Bonventure Cemetery.
Sister Ruth Schleher, RSM
Sister Ruth Schlehr, 66, died Jan. 15, 2003, in the Mercy Center Health Care Unit.
The daughter of Isabelle (Gebhard) and the late John Schlehr, the former Sister Mary Luke attended St. John the Evangelist Elementary School and Mount Mercy Academy, both in Buffalo. She attended Trocaire, Medaille and Canisius colleges, all of Buffalo, and earned a bachelor’s degree from Marywood College and a master’s degree from the University of Notre Dame.
Sister Ruth entered the Sisters of Mercy in 1954. She taught in elementary schools staffed by the Sisters of Mercy, including St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Teresa’s, Holy Family and All Saints, in Buffalo, and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Orchard Park. She was principal of St. Mary’s School in Olean, Holy Family, St. John the Evangelist and St. Martin Schools, in Buffalo. She was principal of Mount Mercy Academy and coordinator of Cultural Integration for the Catholic Health System. She was also a well-known artist.
Survivors include her mother and her sisters Mary Parysek, Thelma Winter, Joan Hauth, Jacqueline Schmitz and a brother, John.
A funeral Mass was celebrated on Jan. 18, 2003, in Mercy Center Chapel. Burial was in Holy Cross Cemetery, Lackawanna.
Sister Mary Donald Thacker, OSF
Sister Mary Donald Thacker, 85, died Dec. 25, 2002, in Mount St. Mary’s Hospital, Lewiston.
The former Marjorie Thacker, born in New Lexington, Ohio, professed final vows with the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity at Stella Niagara in1938. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Canisius College and a master’s degree from St. Louis University.
She taught at St. Joseph’s School, Gowanda; St. Michael’s School, Buffalo; Stella Niagara Cadet School, Stella Niagara; and Sacred Heart Academy, Amherst.
A funeral Mass was celebrated Dec. 30, 2002, in the sisters’ chapel at Stella Niagara. Burial was in the Stella Niagara Cemetery.
Msgr. Gabalski of St. Stan’s passes away
Msgr. John R. Gabalski, long time pastor of St. Stanislaus Church and one of the most well-known priests of the area, passed away Thursday night, Oct. 9, due to complications from surgery he had earlier in the week at Sisters Hospital in Buffalo.
"He has been a true patriarch, a rock-solid priest and an intrepid leader," said Bishop Henry J. Mansell of Msgr. Gabalski's passing. "He was powerful in his speech and even stronger in example. His inspiration will remain with us as long as we live."
The bells tolled all day Friday at St. Stan’s for the 81-year-old pastor. A large portrait of Msgr. Gabalski stood near the front altar, and many of the people who encountered the priest over the years complimented his boundless energy.
"He was a priest’s priest, a tireless worker," said David Szyjka, a third-generation parishioner at St. Stan’s and member of the board of trustees. "He considered the parishioners of St. Stan’s his second family. He was the foundation of the parish, and nothing was beyond his reach because everything (he did) was for God. He was the heart and soul of the East Side."
Joseph Macielag, president of the Polish American Conference, compared Msgr. Gabalski to Pope John Paul II, not only because of their Polish heritage, but their commitment to hard work.
"He was a true pastor, reaching out to everybody," Macielag said. "Msgr. Gabalski was a very special person. He lived the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He was always available and always involved with the parish. We knew he was past the retirement age for pastors, yet he never took a day off."
Msgr. Gabalski was pastor of St. Stan’s when many neighborhood Poles left the East Side and moved to the suburbs. Regardless, many of those same people continued to attend Mass at St. Stan’s every week, and its pastor never judged the condition of the neighborhood or its residents.
"The man lived for the East Side," said Szyjka. "When talking about the East Side, he said, ‘Don’t judge what you see; judge what I know.’ He always felt safe (here)."
John Raymond Gabalski was born to John L. and Barbara (Prelewicz) Gabalski on July 9, 1922, in Buffalo. It wasn’t long before he found himself in Orchard Lake, Mich., where he attended St. Mary’s High School. Msgr. Gabalski received his bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College in Michigan, as well as masters’ degrees from DePaul University in Chicago and Canisius College in Buffalo. He also attended the Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and the University of Detroit.
Following his graduation at the SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary in Orchard Lake, Mich., Msgr. Gabalski was ordained a priest by Bishop John F. O’Hara at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Buffalo on May 22, 1948. Later that year, Msgr. Gabalski was back in Michigan teaching at St. Mary’s College in Orchard Lake, serving as a faculty member there until 1965.
He came back to Buffalo in 1965, serving a brief stint as vicar for Resurrection Church in Cheektowaga and then St. Florian’s Parish in Buffalo until 1966. Msgr. Gabalski joined the faculty at the Diocesan Preparatory Seminary in Buffalo in 1965 and served to 1974, when he was assigned as the pastor of Queen of Peace in Buffalo. He served there until 1978, then reassigned to run St. Stan’s, serving there until his passing.
Msgr. Gabalski was named Prelate of Honor, thereby becoming a monsignor, in 1974. In 1993, Pope John Paul II awarded Msgr. Gabalski the Protonotary Apostolic, the highest papal award that can be given to a priest.
He was also a member of the Polish Priests’ Association, Knights of Columbus, Catholic War Veterans Association and the Holy Name Society.
Sister Mary Angelita Komuszynski, CSSF
Sister Mary Angelita Komuszynski, 90, died on Sept. 12, 2003, in the Felician Sisters Health and Wellness Center, Buffalo.
The former Sophie Komuszynski, a graduate of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy, Buffalo, entered the Buffalo Province of the Felician Sisters in 1929 and professed final vows in 1937. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Villa Maria College, Erie, Pa. She was a member of Sacred Heart Parish, Batavia.
Sister Mary Angelita taught for 55 years in Catholic elementary schools in the dioceses of Buffalo, Erie, Syracuse and Ogdensburg. She was also principal at St. Augustine School, Depew, and tutored students at Southtowns Catholic School in Lakeview for seven years. She remained at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Convent in Lakeview and moved to the provincial house in 1999.
She is survived by her sister, Irene Hagen of Reno, Nev.
A funeral Mass was celebrated on Sept. 15 in Villa Maria Convent Chapel. Burial was in St. Stanislaus Cemetery, Cheektowaga.
Father Isidore Kowalski, OFM Conv.
Father Isidore Kowalski, 87, died on Sept. 13, 2003, in Fairhaven, Mass.
He was born in Brandon, Vt., and ordained in 1943 in St. Hyacinth Seminary in Granby, Mass. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in education from Canisius College, Buffalo.
He served at St. Anthony of Padua Friary in Buffalo in 1946 and St. Bonaventure University. He taught at Bishop Ryan High School, Buffalo, from 1947 to 1958 and from 1962 to 1968.
Father Kowalski spent eight years at St. Anthony Mission House in Ellicott City. He served as a missionary in Ghana, West Africa, from 1976 to 1983 when he moved into St. Lawrence Brindisi Friary in the City of Tonawanda. There he preached and served as a chaplain from 1983 to 1985.
He was parochial vicar of Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Church, Buffalo, from 1985 to 1987 and served a year as guardian of the Immaculate Conception Friary and chaplain of the motherhouse of the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph in Hamburg.
Since 1989 he served as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, New Bedford, Mass, where a funeral Mass was celebrated Sept. 18. Burial was on Sept. 19 in St. Stanislaus Cemetery, Cheektowaga.
Sister Frances Lea Laughlin, SMIC
Sister Frances Lea Laughlin died on July 26, 2003, in Albuquerque, N.M.
She entered the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of West Paterson, N.J., in 1934 and professed her final vows in 1935.
Sister Frances Lea earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from St. Bonaventure University followed by a doctorate from Catholic University, Washington, D.C.
She served as a missionary in Tientsin, China, until 1948. She returned due to the rise of communism there and served as a researchist, writer and artist at the Franciscan Institute at St. Bonaventure University.
Sister Frances Lea is survived by her stepmother, Maria A. Laughlin, and half brother, John, and half sister Mary Lea Laughlin Boggs.
A funeral Mass was held on Aug. 6 in St. Joseph Residence, Ringwood, N.J. Burial was in the congregational cemetery in West Paterson.
