Ex-president of St. Anselm College in New Hampshire dies at 84

Published: 2005-12-22

MANCHESTER, N.H. (CNS) -- Benedictine Father Placidus Harry Riley, who led St. Anselm College in Manchester during the turbulent years of the Vietnam era and was an architect of higher education policies in New Hampshire, died Dec. 21 at Bishop Peterson Residence in Manchester. The funeral Mass for the 84-year-old priest was scheduled for Dec. 23 at St. Anselm Abbey Church, followed by burial in St. Leander's Cemetery, adjacent to the monastery on campus. "The Vietnam era was a destructive time on most campuses, but it was fashioned into a dynamic and constructive historical moment at St. Anselm because of the skilled, thoughtful leadership of Father Placidus who so effectively communicated with, and reasoned with, the student body and faculty," read a citation for his honorary doctor of laws degree from the college in 1989.

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