At Theresa's request, our Saint of the day today is not really a Saint (yet), but as his official canonization ceremony is scheduled for November 18, we will pass Servant of God, Solanus Casey into unofficial Sainthood today for the purposes of this post. The Beatification Mass, which is already "sold out", will take place at Ford Field in Detroit. One of the really cool things about this future Saint is that he is very much a "local boy", having been born and raised in Wisconsin and spending much of his adult life in Michigan and Indiana.
Born Bernard Casey in Oak Grove, WI, he was given the name Solanus, after St. Francis Solanus, when he took the habit of a Capuchin Friar -- this was after he worked as a lumberjack, hospital orderly, prison guard and street car driver.
His road to the priesthood was not smooth as he struggled with his studies. (something he had in common with yesterday's featured Saint, John Vianney) Because of his difficulties, he was ordained only as a simplex priest, without the ability to hear confessions or preach publically. His superiors didn't know what to do with him in this capacity, so he was made the monastery porter.
He served for two decades in a succession of friaries in New York and then in 1924, he was transferred to the Saint Bonaventure convent in Detroit, where he worked until 1945.As porter, he was most available to the public and became a great favorite for his compassion and good counsel. Many people credited his intercession for cures and other blessings that they received. . health began to fail, he was sent to "retirement" in Huntington, IN, until returning to Detroit for hospitalization. He died on July 31, 1957.
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