WHEELING, W.Va.—In recognition of their years of service and dedication to the Catholic Church in West Virginia, 10 individuals—two priests, a religious woman, a permanent deacon and six lay people—are to receive papal honors.
Each was nominated for the honors by Most Rev. Michael J. Bransfield, bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, and will be presented with their papal awards at special Masses, celebrated by the bishop.
The honorees include Msgr. P. Edward Sadie, V.F., rector of the Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Charleston, W.Va., who will be promoted from the rank of Prelate of Honor to His Holiness to that of Apostolic Protonotary Supernumerary, the highest rank of a monsignor in the Catholic Church. Receiving the pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross, the highest medal that can be awarded to religious and laity by the papacy, will be Very Rev. Brian O’Donnell, S.J., superior of the Jesuit community at Wheeling Jesuit University in Wheeling, W.Va.; Sister Gail Borgmeyer, S.A.C., provincial of the Pallottine Missionary Sisters and president of Pallottine Health Services, Inc., in Huntington, W.Va.; Rev. Mr. David E. Galvin, permanent deacon at St. James Parish in Charles Town, W.Va.; Lawrence E. Bandi, a layperson from Wheeling; Connie Carey, a layperson from Charleston; Carol Hannah, a layperson from Charleston; Donald R. Kirsch, administrator of Good Shepherd Nursing Home in Wheeling; and Terence A. McCormick, executive director of St. John’s Home for Children in Wheeling. Clarence E. (CEM) Martin, III, a layperson from Martinsburg, W.Va., will be named a knight of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great.
“These papal awards manifest our gratitude as a diocese and the universal church to those who have worked hard to encourage and help others to follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” the bishop said. “This is a way that we can say thank you as the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston.”
The pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross is a medal that recognizes priests, religious or laity who have advanced the life and mission of the Catholic Church on account of services for the church or the pope. The Order of St. Gregory the Great is one of five Pontifical Equestrian Orders, which are honorary knighthoods conferred to men and women by popes in recognition of service to the church and society. The honors were bestowed by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI before his retirement in February.
Each of the recipients will receive a framed certificate of his or her papal honor. The bishop will celebrate Mass at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Wheeling April 20 at 6 p.m. during which O’Donnell, Galvin, Bandi, Kirsch, Martin and McCormick will receive their honors. The bishop will then celebrate Mass at the basilica in Charleston April 27 at 5:30 p.m. during which Sadie, Borgmeyer, Carey and Hannah will receive their honors.
Papal Award Honorees
Msgr. P. Edward Sadie, V.F., has been a priest of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston for 55 years and has served as rector of the basilica for 32 years. In that role, he has offered distinguished pastoral service, most notably ensuring the existence of Charleston Catholic High School and Sacred Heart Grade School, beautifying and expanding the basilica and its grounds and working for the elevation of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart to a minor basilica a few years ago. He was made a monsignor, a Prelate of Honor to His Holiness, in 2005 and, at age 82, he continues in active ministry.
“I am truly grateful to Bishop Bransfield for recommending this unexpected papal honor for me and I am delighted that our Holy Father saw fit to elevate me to the rank of Protonotary Apostolic Supernumerary as one of his last generous acts before retiring,” Sadie said. “As the act of making me a monsignor in 2005, so also this elevation acknowledges the faith and faith-inspired ministries of Sacred Heart parishioners.
“I hope this honor will motivate people of faith in the Kanawha Valley to acknowledge the generous, selfless ministry of their priests, ministers, rabbis and imam in serving them and helping them to pass on their faith and religious traditions,” he said.
Very Rev. Brian O’Donnell, S.J., entered the Society of Jesus as a novice in 1974 for the Maryland Province of Jesuits and was ordained a priest for the Society of Jesus in 1986. He serves as executive secretary of the Catholic Conference of West Virginia, which deals with the state legislature concerning social issues of interest to the church. He has represented the diocese, its concerns and its social ministries to the members of state government. He is also co-chair of the Peace and Justice Program Unit of the West Virginia Council of Churches. Recently, he became superior of the Jesuit community at WJU, where he has provided valuable leadership for this religious house and the priests serving the diocese’s only Catholic university.
O’Donnell was also part of a team of individuals who worked on the drafting of Bransfield’s pastoral letters “On My Holy Mountain,” on mine safety; “Hearts Made Whole,” on mental and behavioral health; and “Setting Children Free,” on the effects of poverty on children in West Virginia. Most recently, he has taken a leadership role in the diocesan response to the Health & Human Services Mandate regarding contraceptives and other practices contrary to Catholic morality.
“I’m deeply grateful to our bishop and to Pope Benedict for this honor,” he said. “In a way, it honors all those who contributed so much to Bishop Bransfield’s striking pastoral letters.”
Sister Gail Borgmeyer, S.A.C., made her first vows as a member of the Pallottine Missionary Sisters in 1981 and became provincial of the order in 2004. The Pallotines administer St. Mary’s Medical Center in Huntington and, with her guidance, this healthcare institute continues to be a leader and maintains a strong Catholic identity. She has a long service to the church in Wheeling-Charleston and to her own religious community as well as her leadership in the healthcare ministry which continues to be very important in the life of the church and the greater community.
“Since receiving the news from Bishop Bransfield about being selected to receive this beautiful award, two recurring themes come to mind,” Borgmeyer said. “The first is from the Gospel of Matthew about a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden, and the second is the Pallottine Missionary Sisters. Throughout West Virginia, they had set their eyes on the hills to found hospitals, start schools and provide social services for the praise and glory of God. It will not be my hands receiving this honor, but the hands of all my Pallottine Missionary Sisters, who call West Virginia their home; who have loved the people who they have served, and who have served with them.”
Rev. Mr. David E. Galvin provides for the pastoral administration and sacramental formation within St. James Parish as pastoral associate of the parish. He also has worked closely with a succession of pastors. St. James is one of the largest parishes in the diocese and Galvin has helped to organize the parish, while striving to make sure that parish ministries are thriving and effective. He also organizes a yearly mission trip with members of the parish to help those in need in Webster County in West Virginia.
“For those who have formed me and for those that I am able to minister with, I am thankful for this gift from our Holy Father, Pope Benedict, and Bishop Bransfield,” Galvin said. “It has been a beautiful gift to serve our Lord in West Virginia. We are blessed with so many dedicated men and women struggling to find Jesus Christ and living out virtuous lives every day. It is a joy to share in the ministry of the Holy Father and the bishop by ministering to our youth, to vocations, to an openness to life and to help the poor throughout the state, especially in Webster County.
“The greatest gift that my parents gave me is my Catholic faith,” he said. “I have always viewed the world through the lens of the Catholic faith and from my earliest days in catechism I was taught to stay with Peter no matter what happened. To be more intimately connected to the pope is a gift of hope to all of us as we continue to grow closer to Jesus Christ.”
Lawrence E. Bandi is a member of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Wheeling and an active member of the Wheeling Serra Club, which assists in the vocations recruitment work of the diocese. A successful local businessman, he has been very generous within the local Catholic community, giving freely of his time to several charitable organizations and Catholic institutions, as well as offering generous financial support to his parish and to the diocese. He has served as president of the Board of Directors of Wheeling Hospital, the diocesan hospital. He is also a current member of the Board of Directors of the Welty Corporation and has served on the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities West Virginia.
“What a humbling experience receiving this honor has been,” Bandi said. “It is a privilege for me to be part of several organizations that serve the needs of the less fortunate throughout our diocese. I particularly enjoy working with the dedicated, compassionate and caring religious and laypersons on advisory boards like Catholic Charities, Welty Corporation, United Way and the Serra Club. I am honored by the award and grateful that Bishop Bransfield regarded me in such a way that he would recommend me for the pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross.”
Connie Carey is a devoted member of St. Agnes Parish in Charleston and a generous Catholic. She has been very supportive of priests throughout her life, taking a special interest in the care of her parish priests and, in particular, Father John McDonnell, the long-time pastor of St. Agnes and the diocesan director of Ecumenical Affairs, and Father Christopher Turner, current pastor of St. Agnes. She also has been very active in outreach to the poor and those in need. She is co-manager of “Common Grounds,” an outreach which is supported by three Charleston-area churches, including St. Agnes.
“I feel very honored to receive this award,” she said. “However, I feel there are so many other people who are worthy to receive this rather than myself. I’d like to accept it on their behalf—of all the people who work for the poor, especially here in the southern part of West Virginia.”
Carol Hannah, a devoted member of St. Agnes Parish in Charleston, has been very supportive of priests and women religious throughout her life, taking a special interest in the care of her parish priests and in the Congregation of St. Joseph Sisters of Wheeling. She has been very active as an associate of the Congregation of St. Joseph, making the commitment to materially support the sisters and to live the Josephite spirituality and charism in her own daily life. She has been an active member of the Charleston Serra Club, whose mission is to foster and affirm vocations to the priesthood and vowed religious life.
“When I received the call from Bishop Bransfield informing me that he was giving me this award, I was very pleased but shocked,” she said. “What I do with and for the sisters (Congregation of St. Joseph) and the priests is not to receive an award but because they are my friends. Also, I love and respect them for their dedication to the church and the people.”
Donald R. Kirsch is an active member of St. Alphonsus Parish in Wheeling. He has served as administrator of Good Shepherd Nursing Home, the largest nonprofit nursing home in the state, since 1981. He has also worked for the addition of the Welty Home for the Aged, an assisted living facility, and for the Bertha Welty Apartments and Clara Welty Apartments, two independent living facilities, to his responsibilities. All of these facilities are owned by the Welty Trust, of which the bishop of Wheeling-Charleston is the primary trustee.
“When I received word from His Excellency, Bishop Bransfield, of the papal honor from the Holy Father, Pope Benedict, I was overcome with a tremendous sense of unworthiness,” Kirsch said. “I thought of my wife Barbara, my children, and my parents who sacrificed so much over the years on my behalf, and indirectly, on behalf of the Welty Corporation.
“I wish to thank the Holy Father, Pope Benedict, and His Excellency Bishop Bransfield for this prestigious honor,” he said. “I am overwhelmed by their actions. I also wish to thank Msgr. Kevin M. Quirk, with whom I work so closely and who has been so supportive of me. I wish to thank Clara Welty and her Sister Bertha Welty for their vision in creating the Welty Corporation. Also, I wish to thank our residents and their families for trusting us, and our outstanding staff members and directors who together, have advanced the mission of the Welty Corporation over the years. Clara and Bertha Welty would be proud of what the Welty Corporation has become. May God continue to bless each of these wonderful and dedicated individuals. I accept this papal honor with great humility on their behalf.”
Clarence E. (CEM) Martin, III, is a member of St. Joseph Parish in Martinsburg. He serves on the Board of Advisors of the School of Law of The Catholic University of America and is active with a number of charitable organizations, both in the church and in the greater community. He has assisted with Catholic Charities West Virginia, helping to organize the first fundraising dinner in the diocese to benefit the works of the organization and assisted the bishop in addressing organizational changes to Catholic Charities, its sponsored programs and its locations in the Eastern Panhandle.
He is president of the Washington-Baltimore Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums. He is a member of the Order of Malta, serving on the Board of Directors, Federal Association, from 2003-2009 in obedience. He chaired a number of committees for the order and was awarded the Cross of Merit, the pro Merito Miletensi and the President’s Award. He is also a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre and the Constantinian Order of St. George. His grandfather was named a Knight Commander of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by Pope Pius XI.
“I was totally surprised,” Martin said. “I had no idea that the bishop had recommended me for this extraordinary honor. I am very grateful to him and the Holy Father. This is an incredible honor which I know that I do not deserve. I know there are many others who are much more deserving of this honor than I. Receiving this honor is very humbling and has given me a much deeper appreciation of humility for which I am very grateful.”
Terence A. McCormick is an active member of Corpus Christi Parish in Wheeling and a former Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus. He became the executive director of the St. John’s Home for Children in 1993. St. John’s Home is a private, nonprofit organization that was established as an orphanage in 1856 by Most Rev. Richard V. Whelan of the Diocese of Wheeling and the Sisters of St. Joseph and today is a family-centered, social service agency that operates a 12-bed residential group home for preadolescent boys, ages 8 to 14, with presenting psychic disorders such as conduct disorders, affective disorders, attention deficit disorders and disorders of impulse control. Children are placed in the program usually by order of the civil court. St. John’s Home continues to be a diocesan institution.
“I really feel extremely unworthy of, and incredibly humbled by, this recognition,” McCormick said. “As a Catholic, it simply does not get any better than this. It is also quite clear to me that it is not just about me, but that I am simply in a position to receive it on behalf of others. I am just a common guy trying to do what God has called me to do, plain and simple. I am also one who has been fortunate enough to have been raised by two humble working class people, my late parents. I have also been blessed by God to be surrounded by extraordinary people my entire life, starting with and especially including my late parents, my five brothers and one sister, my extended family, those who have taught, coached, mentored and influenced me over the years, and those with whom I have had the privilege of working these nearly 30 years. Without any and all of them, none of this would have come to fruition.
“This recognition truly belongs to them as much, if not more so, than it does to me,” he said. “On behalf of all of those people, I would like to extend my deepest and heartfelt thanks to Bishop Bransfield for his extraordinary kindness in facilitating this recognition and to His Eminence for bestowing it. I am reminded of the words of the late Pope John XXIII who I believe sums it up best when he said, ‘I will firmly believe, despite appearances, that the good providence of God cares for me as no one else who exists in the world.’”
