July 11, 2010 THE UNFINISHED IMAGE
In the Spring, Lorene came to La Crosse. She is my oldest brother’s mother-in-law and beloved by everyone in the family. During the winter she had lost her husband. Galen Price, Doctor of Chiropractics, was a giant of a man. I first me him just before my brother’s wedding in 2958. At that time he was teaching philosophy at Palmer School in avenport. This handsome man, tall, dark and slender, sported a pipe and spoke with carefully chosen words. Lorene was his perfect partner. Their affection for each other was evident. Her exuberance was a match for his reflective manner. Over the years my visits with them only increased my admiration. Gradually, the years took their toll. Last winter he succumbed after a linger illness. I drove to Davenport for a day to be present to the family. Then, in the Spring, Lorene came to La Crosse. She was accompanied by my brother and his wife. Her enthusiasm for life hadn’t missed a beat.
While here she presented me with a box holding a precious item. It is the custom of the Knights of Columbus, to present a chalice to the family at the occasion of the death of a former Grand Knight. Galen Price had been a Grand Knight of the Order. I was honored to receive the item. Lorene explained. “I know you have a chalice from your own parents; however, if you know of some young priest who needs a chalice, please tell him about Galen and give him this one.” The name of Galen Price is inscribed on the cup of the chalice. I agreed to do so.
Father Jude Ndugbu came to the Cathedral in September. One day later, his father died very unexpectedly. Plans were made for his return to the village of his father, a giant of a man. “What was your father like?” I asked Jude one evening before his departure. “Oh, my father was a great man. He was not highly educated, but he was an ‘educationist.’ That is, if any child from the village was deprived of an education, my father would pay for it. Moreover, he went to Mass every day.” Two nights before his departure, Father Jude said, “I should like to give a chalice to the church in my village in memory of my father. Do you know where I could get such a chalice?” “Yes,” I answered.
And that is how a chalice, for the sacred purpose of holding the precious blood of Christ, will be used at Mass for a century or more in a village in Nigeria; it is a chalice on one side of which is inscribed the name of Galen Price and on the other side of which is inscribed the name of Sylvester Ndugbu, two great men. Different in many ways, they were one in faith, united by the Christ whose blood their names now enshrine.