LIBERTY Diocese plans to buy retreat

The diocese said the property has many possibilities.
By D.A. WILKINSON
VINDICATOR RELIGION EDITOR
LIBERTY -- The Catholic Diocese of Youngstown is buying the Sacred Heart Retreat and Renewal Center at 3128 Loganway.
The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart based in Aurora, Ill., who have owned and operated the center for 50 years, will move on to other ministries, said the Rev. Vincent Freeh, local superior and center director.
The diocese announced Monday it is buying the center for $700,000.
The order didn't have the personnel to continue operation, and hadn't been making a profit, said Father Freeh.
The center includes a mansion with a 40-room annex and several smaller buildings on 271/2 acres, said Father Freeh. Sixty people can attend retreats at one time.
The property was bought in 1953 and the center was dedicated Aug. 15, 1954.
The property was formerly part of the Oriole Stock Farm of Major John A. Logan Jr., who was killed in 1899 in the Spanish-American War. Major Logan used the farm for breeding some of the world's greatest hackney horses. Industrialist William J. Sampson Sr. bought the home from the Logan family in 1922. Sampson's wife sold the estate to the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.
The missionaries conducted their first retreat there in September 1954, the father said. The order will end control as of Oct. 31, and retreats are scheduled until then.
'Great investment'
Bishop Thomas J. Tobin said in a statement, "The addition of the [order's] facilities to diocesan operations will give the diocese the needed space and flexibility to offer programs, convene meetings, and provide additional services, such as youth ministry events, in a retreat-like atmosphere. This is a great investment for the diocese. There are many possibilities for the future development of this valuable resource."
Monsignor Robert J. Siffrin, the diocese's vicar general, said a study would be made on the potential uses of the property. The diocese plans to continue the order's mission of retreat-style programs.
The diocese now uses facilities at churches for many of its programs. The study would also show what kind of facilities or programs could be offered at the centrally located center.
Priests' assignments
Members of the order will continue to work in the diocese. The Rev. Gerald J. Sommer, a member of the order, is pastor at St. Mary's Immaculate Conception parish in Canton.
In November, Father Freeh will begin a pastoral ministry at St. Paul Church, also in Canton, doing outreach to Hispanics.
Father Freed said he has spent most of his five years at the center helping to create an evangelism program called "Being Church" that he'll be using in his new work.
Two other priests of the order assigned to the center, Rev. Joseph Gleixner and the Rev. Thomas Carney, will move to the two nearby churches in Canton.
The Rev. David DeLuca is another of the order's priests assigned to the center. He is teaching in Allentown, Pa., and it is up to the order whether he will return to the diocese.
Of the order's four brothers at the center, Eugene Thomas will begin a pastoral ministry in San Antonio, Texas. Robert Murphy, Al Schirmers and Wilfred Miller will go to a retirement facility.
A farewell celebration by the MSC Community will be at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 22 at the Maronite Center.
wilkinson@vindy.com