Legacy of faith, joy and perseverance
CHARLOTTE — Drawn to his joyfulness and deep faith in God, everyone wanted to be around Joe Hunt.
Hunt, the first African American member of the Knights of Columbus in North Carolina, died Feb. 13 aged 87.
Hunt’s son Jeff counts himself particularly blessed to have spent so much time with his father. The two operated 920 Services, a Charlotte-based catering business. The business, a spinoff from Joe Hunt’s longtime bartending venture, is still thriving today.
“His clients would reschedule their party depending on whether he was available or not. Everyone knew they could call my father and not worry about how it would go. He gave the same quality service to everyone. That was just him. He had to do it the right way,” his son recalls.
Friends including Ed Norris, a fellow Knight of Columbus, note they never heard Hunt say an unkind word about anyone, despite the discrimination Hunt initially faced in joining the Knights of Columbus in the segregated South. Instead, Hunt cultivated a deeply personal relationship with God through prayer and the sacraments.
“He was a prayerful man,” Norris says. “He’d say to me, ‘Brother Norris, if you would just wear out the knees in those pants, you’d get more help.’”
Hunt’s zest for life was evident to everyone who met him. The source of his joy was his faith in God, and what fed his soul was the place he most wanted to be: Holy Mass.
Friends, family and fellow Knights flocked to Hunt’s funeral Mass on Feb. 20 at his home parish of Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte, with more tuning in to a livestream on the parish’s YouTube channel because of COVID-19 crowd restrictions.
Deacon Curtiss Todd, a longtime friend at the parish, eulogized Hunt in his homily, noting, “In times of snow, sleet, rain and COVID-19,” Joe was at Mass every Sunday “sitting in the first pew.”
“He knew and recognized that spiritually Jesus was in that sanctuary and on that altar,” Todd said, “and he wanted to be as close as he could to his Lord and Savior.”
Hunt’s faith-filled outlook came from his upbringing, his career in the Army, and his family life in Charlotte.
Joseph Jefferson Hunt Sr. was born June 15, 1933, and raised by his mother and grandparents on their family farm west of Charlotte in Shelby, N.C. The family went to a Southern Baptist church, and he and his brother and two sisters attended a general school where all ages learned together. Before heading off to school each morning, Hunt did chores on the farm, collecting eggs and gathering firewood.
“Most kids don’t understand what went into the making of America,” says Robert L. Douglas Jr., who joined the Knights of Columbus thanks to Hunt’s encouragement. “Joe was what every American should be. He worked hard, served in the military, and was a great husband and father.”
After graduation in 1954, Hunt was drafted into the U.S. Army as a combat engineer and served in Germany as part of the post-World War II rebuilding effort. He then committed to another 10 years in the U.S. Army Reserve. He was honorably discharged and received several medals including ones for National Defense Service, Good Conduct, and Army of Occupation for his tour in Germany.
Hunt’s friends and family say his Army career had a lifelong impact, honing his leadership skills and broadening his appreciation for people from all walks of life.
When Hunt returned home, he took advantage of the G.I. Bill and earned an associate’s degree in business from Carver College in Atlanta, a historically black college with an emphasis on theology. The school choice was one more example of how he kept his faith at the center of his life.
He met a young woman named Mary Barnes and they married in 1958. The next year, they converted to Catholicism – drawn to the faith because of the people at a little Catholic church near their Charlotte home: Our Lady of Consolation. With roots dating back to the 1940s, the parish has celebrated the rich heritage of both Roman Catholicism and African American traditions.
Still a relatively new Catholic in 1962, Hunt befriended Bishop Vincent Waters of Raleigh while serving as his driver. Bishop Waters encouraged Hunt to join the Knights of Columbus. Although the Knights have a long history of advocating for racial equality, including admitting as members African Americans as far back as 1895, integration took much longer in the South.
In 1962 Hunt applied to become a Knight of Columbus in Council 770, the oldest council in North Carolina, established in Charlotte in 1903. Even though the rules allowed men of color, he still faced discrimination and his parish priest refused to sign Hunt’s application. The rejection hurt, but Bishop Waters encouraged Hunt to persist.
The council’s chaplain quietly signed his application instead, and on Nov. 16, 1965, Hunt received his First Degree – becoming the first African American Knight of Columbus in North Carolina. In 1968, Hunt received his Fourth Degree, which includes Knights who wish to live out the fourth principle of patriotism.
Despite the difficulties Hunt faced getting into the Knights of Columbus, his son says far more people were with him than against him. Norris says Hunt “rose above all that,” referring to the discrimination and bigotry Hunt endured during the Jim Crow era.
Hunt’s funeral Mass Feb. 20 at Our Lady of Consolation Church drew fellow Knights of Columbus, friends and family. (Photo provided)Hunt became the Knights’ district marshal, traveling all over North Carolina. “He would drive around with the state deputy, going from the mountains to the coast, to promote the Knights,” says Sergio Miranda, current state treasurer and grand knight of Council 770. “We don’t think that’s unusual today, but a black man and white man driving around from place to place raised some eyebrows in the ’60s and ’70s.”
Hunt was tireless in his efforts to serve the Church and his community as a eucharistic minister, a leader of the parish Men’s Group and as a Boy Scout troop leader – all while caring for his family, including his wife Mary, who suffered serious health problems, and their two children, Cheryle and Jeff. He and Mary celebrated 46 years of marriage before her death in 2004.
The close-knit fraternity and principles of charity and unity promoted by the Knights of Columbus greatly appealed to Hunt. He occupied all of the Knights’ council and assembly roles, including grand knight from 1997 to 1999 – earning the tongue-in-cheek title of “Worthy Past Everything” and winning the North Carolina Golden Knight of the Year Award in 2018.
Though he was honored to receive the recognition, it wasn’t what motivated him. “Accolades are nice, but he didn’t live for those things,” says Jeff, who was knighted by his father when he received his own Fourth Degree.
Hunt lived to serve others, and his talents for cooking and conversation are remembered by all those who knew him.
He especially loved organizing and catering events and fundraisers for the residents of Holy Angels in Belmont, N.C., a home run by the Sisters of Mercy for people with intellectual developmental disabilities and delicate medical conditions.
When he grew too frail to command the kitchen during Holy Angels’ Christmas dinner with Santa, everyone still wanted him there. He was a comfort and an expert for all their questions, but he couldn’t just sit there; he did a little cutting and chopping, too.
“My father didn’t see color, financial or economic status, he just treated everyone the same, and he wanted everyone to feel the same,” says Jeff. “Even after he retired, our clients would say, ‘Bring your father; we just want him there.’ They wanted his presence.”
— Annie Ferguson, correspondent.
Pictured at top: Joe Hunt St. and his son Jeff, both Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, are pictured at Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte. Joe Hunt, the first African American Knight of Columbus in North Carolina, passed away Feb. 13, 2021. (Photo provided)
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BELMONT — Benedictine Father David Kessinger, the senior professed monk of Belmont Abbey, died peacefully in the Lord Feb. 7, 2021, strengthened by the sacraments.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated Feb. 10, 2021, the Feast of St. Scholastica, at Mary Help of Christians Basilica.
Robert Kessinger was born Aug. 5, 1932, in Clifton Forge, Va., the son of Samuel K and Ethel Shughrue Kessinger. He first came to Belmont Abbey in the fall semester 1949 as a student in the junior college. He subsequently earned a Bachelor of Science in history and economics at Mount St. Mary’s College in Emmitsburg, Md., and later pursued graduate studies in library science at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. Upon entering Belmont Abbey, he was given the name David and was sent for his novitiate formation to St. Bernard Abbey, where he made his first profession of vows on July 2, 1954. Following seminary studies at Belmont Abbey, he was ordained a priest on May 31, 1958.
Father David initially taught geometry in the prep school at Belmont, and served as librarian for the college for 13 years. He served for one year in each of the abbey’s dependencies in Richmond and Savannah.
Father David was a gentle soul and the kindest of men. He could never understand why anyone would be unkind, and he suffered much from life’s inevitable hardships. He himself never grew weary of offering assistance to others, and always willingly accepted any and all tasks he was asked to undertake. His sensitive nature, however, made him especially susceptible to disappointment and discouragement.
From his mother, a piano teacher, Father David received a love for classical music. He had an extensive knowledge of composers and their works and loved to listen to music, especially in live performances. He had a quick wit, made all the more effective by his own quiet and self-effacing personality. He could produce an endless supply of jokes with puns as a specialty. His training as a librarian made him an indefatigable researcher; an avocation which reached new heights with the advent of the photocopy machine and the internet. He shared a continual stream of articles, jokes, pictures and other materials with his confreres and friends, archiving copies of everything in his room over the years.
He was a devoted and faithful priest with a special compassion for the sick and homebound, and a kindness which made him a much sought-after confessor. He loved his duties as chaplain to the Sisters of Mercy, who readily returned his affection. He was devoted to his confreres, Abbot Walter Coggin and Father Kieran Neilson, with whom he made several pilgrimages to the Blessed Mother’s Shrine at Fatima.
He was preceded in death by his parents, and by his sisters, Phyllis Kessinger and Sister Dolores Kessinger, C.S.C. He is survived by the monks of Belmont Abbey.
— Belmont Abbey College
BETHEL PARK, Pa. — Father Edward J. Vilkauskas, a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, died Jan. 9, 2021, at St. Clair Hospital from complications from COVID-19. He was 74.
Father Vilkauskas was born Aug. 6, 1946, in Danville, Pa., and was baptized and nourished in the faith at Our Mother of Consolation Church in Mt. Carmel, Pa. He professed his vows as a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit on Aug. 22, 1965, at the Holy Ghost Novitiate in Ridgefield, Conn., and was ordained to the priesthood June 2, 1973, at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.
After ordination, Father Vilkauskas was first appointed to the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Pittsburgh as assistant pastor. In 1975, he went to Catholic University to complete a master’s degree in liturgical studies. In 1976, he was assigned to be the Director of Vocations and Liturgical Animation of the Eastern Province of the Congregation. He later was appointed as Director of Collegiate Seminarians at Duquesne University.
In 1982, he became Director of Theologians at CTU in Chicago and then pursued additional studies at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend. He took a position as a lecturer in liturgy at the Mission Institute of London in 1985. He was then appointed in 1988 as Director of Evangelization for the Diocese of Charlotte as well as pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Monroe, where he served until 2000.
In 2001, he was assigned as temporary administrator of St. Mary Magdalene in Chicago. He was appointed pastor of Old St. Mary’s in Detroit in 2002. At Old St. Mary’s, he worked hard to bring the Spiritan charism to the area and established a program to feed the poor and homeless people every first Monday of the month. In 2013, after a sabbatical, he took a position as chaplain for the Sisters of Christian Charity at the Holy Family Convent in Danville, Pa., until 2018 when they closed the convent. He then retired at Libermann Hall in Bethel Park.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Vincent and Wanda Gardocki Vilkauskas. He is survived by his brother, Vince Vilkauskas (wife Carol) of Whitehall, Pa.; and two nieces and nephew: Cheryl and Chris Dorschutz and children Wyatt and Sierra of Coplay, Pa., Denise and Jeffrey Vilkauskas and son Zachery of Northampton, Pa., and Cynthia Vilkauskas of Northampton.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, funeral arrangements will be limited to close family. The viewing will be held at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021, followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 a.m. For those not able to attend, the funeral Mass will be live-streamed on the U.S. Spiritans’ Facebook page: www.facebook.com/spiritans.
There will be another Mass at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, at Holy Ghost Prep, 2429 Bristol Pike in Bensalem, Pa., followed by burial in the community cemetery.
Memorial donations may be made to the Congregation of the Holy Spirit designated for retirement or for the education of future Holy Spirit Fathers and Brothers, 6230 Brush Run Road, Bethel Park, PA 15102.
— Catholic News Herald
Pictured: Pastors all: Father Vilkauskas, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Monroe from 1988 to 2000, stands with Bishop Peter Jugis, also a former pastor of the parish, and current pastor Father Benjamin Roberts, on the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes 2018. (Photo provided by Father Benjamin Roberts)
HENDERSONVILLE — Deacon Rudolph “Rudy” Joseph Triana passed away Jan. 23, 2021, at his home. He was 84.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021, at St. Barnabas Church in Arden.
He was born Sept. 11, 1936, in Miami, Fla., to the late Carlos M. Triana and Celia Ruiz Triana. He was married for 57 years to his “best friend” and love of his life, Mary Bornoty Triana, who passed away in May 2018. He was grateful for his wonderful life, family and church.
In 1976, Deacon Triana and his wife Mary moved from Miami to Maggie Valley to raise their three sons in a slower-paced, family-friendly environment. There Deacon Triana began a career in real estate and construction, and he served many years as a high school football referee.
Deacon Triana always wanted to serve God. He started as an altar server in the third grade and, after moving to Maggie Valley, he served at Holy Mass at St. Margaret of Scotland Church assisting Father Michael Murphy. In January 1980, when Bishop Michael J. Begley announced the formation of a permanent diaconate program, Father Murphy went to him – the humble altar server – and told him he should apply.
Three years later, on May 29, 1983, Deacon Triana was one of 19 men ordained in the first class of permanent deacons for the Diocese of Charlotte.
He began his diaconate ministry at his home parish in Maggie Valley, where he served for 13 years. Later he served at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Candler and for a short time at Immaculate Conception Parish in Hendersonville.
In 2009 he began serving at St. Barnabas Parish. Deacon Triana served his community and parish by performing baptisms, witnessing weddings, visiting the sick and elderly and working closely with the Spanish community.
His wife Mary was an important part of his life and his ministry. He once said, “There is no better life for me than to be a deacon. My wife Mary supports me in everything, even coming to three Masses on Sunday if I am serving three Masses. We are always together in ministry.”
Deacon Triana will be greatly missed at St. Barnabas and within the Church of Western North Carolina that he so greatly loved.
He is survived by his children: Dr. Rudy J. Triana Jr. (Victoria), Michael J. Triana (Shawna), and Andrew J. Triana (Alisha); grandchildren: Enrique, Antonio and Anabella; his brothers, Henry Triana (Juanita) and Gilbert Triana (Sylvia) and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
Flowers and memorials may be sent to St. Barnabas Church, 109 Crescent Hill Road, Arden, NC 28704.
Groce Funeral Home of Asheville was in charge of the arrangements.
— Catholic News Herald
SINSINAWA, Wis. — Dominican Sister Florence Gavin died Dec. 8, 2020, at St. Dominic Villa in Hazel Green, Wis. Her religious name was Sister Petra.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at the Dominican motherhouse in Sinsinawa on Dec. 18, 2020, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery.
Sister Florence made her first profession as a Dominican Sister of Sinsinawa on Aug. 5, 1950, and her perpetual profession on Aug. 5, 1953. She taught for 30 years and served as director of religious education for four years, nurse aid for two years, and pastoral care person for seven years. Sister Florence guided people who wanted to grow in their spiritual lives for five years. She was generous to all in her gentle attention to God’s path as each life unfolded in her presence.
In the Diocese of Charlotte, Sister Florence guided people in their spiritual lives at St. Jude Parish in Sapphire Valley and Our Lady of the Mountains Parish in Highlands from 1990-1991.
Besides North Carolina, Sister Florence served in Illinois, the District of Columbia, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, California, Iowa, Alabama, South Carolina, Hawaii and Tennessee, as well as Cochabamba, Bolivia.
She was born May 13, 1929, in Lake Geneva, Wis., the daughter of Paul and Blanche (Robinson) Gavin.
She was preceded in death by her parents; a sister, Helena Gavin; and four brothers, Robert Gavin, G. Thomas Gavin, Paul Gavin and A. Peter Gavin.
She is survived by nieces, nephews and her Dominican Sisters with whom she shared 70 years of religious life.
Memorials may be made to the Sinsinawa Dominicans, 585 County Road Z, Sinsinawa, WI, 53824-9701 or at www.sinsinawa.org/donate online.
A repeat broadcast of the funeral for Sister Florence is available online at www.sinsinawa.org/live. Click on the “on demand” tab.
— Catholic News Herald