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92_HR0686
LRB9216133RHrhA
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are honored to recognize significant events
4 in the lives of the citizens of the State of Illinois; and
5 WHEREAS, It has come to our attention that the Reverend
6 Father Anthony J. Vader of Chicago is celebrating the 50th
7 anniversary of his priestly ordination on May 4, 2002; and
8 WHEREAS, Father Vader has been a minister, a friend, an
9 adviser, a confidante and staunch supporter of the
10 Filipino-American community for almost fifty years; Father
11 Vader retired in February, 1998, from the Holy Name of Mary
12 Church in Chicago, where he was the parish priest for thirty
13 years; he now lives at the Holy Name of Mary rectory and
14 serves as pastor of the Sacred Heart Church, the mission
15 church of Holy Name of Mary Church; and
16 WHEREAS, Father Vader's fifty years in the priesthood
17 have always been with the Archdiocese of Chicago; after his
18 ordination in May, 1952, at the St. Mary of the Lake Seminary
19 in Mundelein, Illinois, Father Vader was assigned to the Holy
20 Cross Church in Chicago, where he served until 1964; from
21 1964 until 1968, he was assigned to the St. Lawrence Church;
22 Father Vader then served at Holy Name of Mary Church until
23 his retirement; and
24 WHEREAS, Father Vader's many accomplishments at the Holy
25 Name of Mary Church include paying off a huge parish debt,
26 running an excellent parish school, and the construction of a
27 beautiful church; this church has beautiful stained glass
28 windows, wonderful mosaics, and is filled with precious
29 artifacts and art from Africa, the Philippines, and other
30 parts of the world; and
31 WHEREAS, Father Vader has continued his education, both
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1 as a student and teacher; in addition to his Licentiate in
2 Sacred Theology from the St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, he
3 acquired an M.A. degree in Sociology at the University of
4 Chicago and a Ph.D. in Sociology at the Loyola University in
5 Chicago; Father Vader pursued post doctoral studies at
6 Tangaza University in Nairobi, Kenya, in East Africa; he also
7 made time for over 15 years to share his knowledge and love
8 of knowledge with his many students at Niles College and at
9 St. Mary of the Lake Seminary; and
10 WHEREAS, Father Vader met and made friends with several
11 Filipino nurses and doctors at Woodlawn Hospital while he was
12 assigned to the Holy Cross Parish; he was also requested to
13 become chaplain of the Filipino medical personnel at the
14 University of Chicago clinics; Father Vader was very active
15 in FISCA (initially, Filipino Student Catholic Action), which
16 developed into a very dynamic spiritual, social, and cultural
17 organization of Filipinos in America; in 1980, he was
18 contacted by several Filipinos in the southwest side of
19 Chicago to participate in the Santo Nino devotion, very
20 popular in the Philippines; Father Vader continues to be
21 involved in this weekly devotion wherein the icon of the
22 Santo Nino is venerated at homes of different families with a
23 Holy Mass and a Novena; he is the spiritual adviser of the
24 Samahan sa Baryo, an organization of Filipino-American
25 families in the southwest side of Chicago; and
26 WHEREAS, The many services that Father Vader has provided
27 to the Filipino American community over the last 50 years
28 include, but are not limited to, officiating at weddings,
29 baptisms, funerals, house and car blessings, ministering to
30 the sick, attending novenas, pilgrimages, and many other
31 devotions; Father Vader is very active in supporting several
32 charities in the Philippines, the most prominent of which are
33 the "Tuloy sa Don Bosco", and the "Silong Tanglaw"
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1 organizations, which provide housing and education to
2 abandoned or disadvantaged children; he also contributes to
3 several seminaries in the Philippines; Father Vader "goes
4 home" to the Philippines almost every year to visit friends
5 and beneficiaries; and
6 WHEREAS, Father Vader loves to help people and he lives
7 by the motto of his 1952 graduating class, "Jucundus,
8 Abundat, Amore", meaning, "a joyful person abounds with
9 love"; and
10 WHEREAS, In recognition of his many years of service to
11 Filipino Americans, former Philippine President Joseph
12 Estrada awarded Father Vader with a Presidential Citation on
13 June 23, 1999; in 2001, he was inducted into the Chicago
14 Filipino-American Hall of Fame as "Friend of the Filipinos";
15 therefore, be it
16 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
17 NINETY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
18 we congratulate Reverend Father Anthony J. Vader on the 50th
19 anniversary of his priestly ordination; and be it further
20 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
21 presented to Father Anthony J. Vader as an expression of our
22 esteem.