Retired bishop makes family legacy of cooking a lifelong hobby

Published: 2003-12-19

CLARENDON HILLS, Ill. (CNS) -- A casual dinner guest at the home of retired Joliet Auxiliary Bishop Roger L. Kaffer might mistake the red apron that covers him from shoulder to knee and the companion red visor -- both inscribed with "Kaffer's Restaurants" -- as gag gifts. But they're authentic. The garb is an actual uniform from the first fast-food restaurant in Belleville. The bishop's brother owned the establishment for more than 35 years before it closed. He said his mother used to tease that he should trade his priestly collar for a chef's hat to keep the restaurant open. The family business may be closed, but the great recipes are still enjoyed by many as Bishop Kaffer intermingles them with new ones he collects from family and friends. Filling the tummies of a crowd of a hundred is no challenge for this man. He feeds a hungry army of Knights of Columbus and their wives every year in gratitude for contributing sweat equity to a major remodeling project at his home -- the construction of a great room large enough to accommodate more than 100 people for Mass. He's equally at ease entertaining a single seminarian, while discussing the call to vocation.

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