Contemplating

“I remember being called and told I was one of those chosen to go to Georgia to help found a new monastery. Twenty of us were assigned. On March 21, 1946 we took the train from Kentucky to Atlanta. It was raining and cold.”

So remembers Father Francis Kavanaugh, one of the original band of monks that founded the Trappist Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers. They settled on a 1500-acre tract of land donated by retired police Captain James Kinnarny from Louisville. Two years later, in 1948, Abbot Robert McGann was brought from Utah to be the first superior of the community.

The early years of the new monastic community were very harsh. The barn, which they found on the property, became their monastery and chapel until the present buildings were completed by the monks. The bells of the new monastery rang for the first time in 1960. That same year the community of monks had grown to be 100 strong.

In 1957, Abbot Robert died and the present superior, Abbot Augustine, was elected. In the sixties and early seventies, the numbers in the community were down. Today the Monastery of the Holy Spirit counts 60 monks of this contemplative order gathered in Conyers, Georgia.

Healing

St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens goes back to April 17, 1907. On that date two young Athens doctors, H.M. Fillilove and J.P. Proctor, opened the door of their new facility.

Earlier that same year, these two pioneer physicians purchased a two-story house on Milledge Avenue from the Stovall family. The building dated back to 1855. This, they felt, suited their purpose.

Very quickly, the young doctors decided a new modern hospital was needed. They made their plans and in 1919 a four-story building was completed and opened to the university town.

On April 13, 1924, answering a sick call, Dr. J.P. Proctor was killed in an automobile accident. St. Mary’s was continued by his partner until he died in 1935. Mrs. Fillilove continued to operate the hospital until 1937 when the historic medical facility closed.

Archbishop Gerald P. O’Hara, Bishop of Savannah-Atlanta, saw the need for a hospital in this area of his diocese. He requested the Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus from Reading, Penn., to undertake this hospital apostolate. They agreed and sent four nursing sisters in May, 1938 to open St. Mary’s once more. This was accomplished on July 10, 1938.

A witness wrote, “It was a hot Sunday and all stood on the lawn in front of the hospital while Archbishop O’Hara delivered the dedication address. Then the Sisters had an open house.” It was a hospital of under 100 beds.

In 1942, a new wing was added at the old Milledge site. However, the sisters decided to make plans for a new, modern St. Mary’s. In 1962, the dream was achieved as Hill-Burton funds were approved. Construction began a year later.

In January 1966, the new St. Mary’s was opened and today continues to bring healing and medical service to the Athens area. The hospital has 140 beds.

Restoring

In December 1959, Ignatius House was dedicated. The very first Jesuit retreat was preached by Father Harold Cooper one month later in January 1960.

The property, on the banks of the Chattahoochee, was donated by Mrs. Suzanne Schroder, along with a large house some years earlier. The great lady died in 1958 before the retreat house opened.

Father M.V. Jarreau preceded Father Cooper as the builder of the project. In 1961 Father Larry Hein became the director and remained there until 1977. Mrs. Schroder’s son, Father John, became director that same year. He was followed in 1979 by the present Jesuit retreat master, Father Daniel Partridge.

Over the years, Ignatius House has been a center for clergy and lay retreats. It has been a renewal center for youth, the Cursillo Movement, Marriage Encounter, the Spanish Apostolate and other Christian ministries. Dialogues between Christian and non-Christian groups have taken place in this perfect setting for prayer and discussion.

Learning

For the Marist fathers and brothers, it all began in Atlanta in the “Gay Nineties.” In fact, they first came to the city in 1890. They came first of all to staff a parish called Sts. Peter and Paul that was situated on Marietta Street. That parish covered the territory between downtown Atlanta and the Tennessee state line--a 9,000 square-mile parish!

In 1897, the Marists moved north to Ivy Street and bought property for a church and a school. The church went up in one year--the name became Sacred Heart after the very popular devotion of the day. Three years later, in 1901, Marist College was opened. Although it was a high school, it was called “college” because it was accredited to grant B.A. degrees and did actually grant one.

The school grew in numbers and became very famous among the Atlanta citizens of all faiths. While located on Ivy Street, this military school for young men had a capacity of 375 students.

In June 1962, old Marist moved to a new campus in northeast Atlanta. It became a co-educational institution in 1976 and today has an enrollment of almost 900 students.