A little over a month ago, I was invited to attend a special memorial service for Fr. Tom Thole, OSB (1932-2016), a departed monk of Saint John’s.
While I did not have the chance to know Fr. Tom well, this event showed me the weight of the impact he made on many lives.
In particular, Fr. Tom was professor, faculty resident, and adviser to dozens of international students at SJU (and later CSB). He promoted the first International Student Club in the 1970s, and he enthusiastically hosted dinners for students to bond over a shared meal.
While Fr. Tom had passed away in February, several alumni whom he had originally recruited from Hong Kong wanted to travel to Saint John’s to pay their respects. And so the idea of a private memorial service at Saint John’s was formed. It turned out to be a joyous occasion.
On April 22, the Hong Kong contingent of 12 Saint John’s alumni, a Saint Ben’s alumna, and several spouses arrived on campus from various places around the globe. With a sense of irreverent humor Fr. Tom might have appreciated, the group decided that because their CSB alumna friend is named Rose, they would be known as “The Dynamic Dozen and a Rose.”
At the memorial, the Hong Kong friends offered personal reflections on Fr. Tom. They recalled, among other details, his assertive, welcoming handshake at the airport, a powerful antidote to the certain unease felt by a 17-year-old arriving in a new country for the first time.
They spoke appreciatively of his deep laugh, his smell of pipe smoke. And several recounted his bond-cementing student dinners, and illuminating road trips across the continental U.S. during January Term.
Then the guests walked to the beautiful Saint John’s Abbey cemetery, perched on a green hill between Lake Sagatagan and Stumpf Lake. Fresh grass blades broke the softly turned soil of the newest grave, and a floral wreath was lain on behalf of the international students whom Fr. Tom had impacted.
The Hong Kong alumni chose that day to announce to the larger Saint John’s community that they had made a series of generous gifts to establish the Fr. Tom Thole Technology Center in the renovated Alcuin Library.
Not only was this a generous gesture, it was highly creative. In the first phase of their thoughtfully constructed campaign, 28 alumni from Hong Kong (including many others who could not attend) stepped forward to contribute $100,350 to support the Fr. Tom Thole Technology Center. This, in turn, triggered a $50,000 match from each of two major benefactors, all of which together triggered a $125,000 match from another leadership benefactor, which in turn triggered another $250,000 match, which ultimately triggered a $500,000 match from yet another alumnus and his wife. These gifts brought the total given in honor of Fr. Tom to $1,375,775, all from a broad base of supporters.
The long-term impact of this giving goes beyond gratitude for Fr. Tom’s mentorship. Rather, these donors have chosen to extend his honor to the next generation of Johnnies and Bennies who will use this facility, beginning in January 2017. And today, those students hail from all over the world, including Hong Kong.
Before his passing, Fr. Tom was profoundly touched by the Hong Kong alumni’s plans to name the technology center in Alcuin Library after him. In fact, he said it was one of the greatest honors he had received in his 50-plus years at Saint John’s.
After the day’s events, I had the lucky opportunity to join several of the Dynamic Dozen – along with Rose – for a celebratory toast in St. Joe. From their lively recollections of college days, it was clear how much Fr. Tom meant to them. It was also clear that Saint John’s passion runs deep in the blood of our alumni – no matter how far away they live.
Gānbēi!