Rev. Michael Wasiel, who late in his career took up Spanish to adapt to the changing population of his Back of the Yards parish and who, as the last surviving member of the Mundelein Seminary Class of 1933, had been an ordained priest in the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese longer than anyone else, died Friday, July 7, in Holy Family Villa in Lemont.
Father Wasiel, 97, retired from active ministry in 1978. He had been suffering from various ailments, including circulatory problems, and never fully recovered from a fall in April, his sister Genevieve Wojtczak said.
From 1966 until his retirement, Father Wasiel was pastor of Sacred Heart parish in the Back of the Yards. “He was very docile, he would do whatever he was instructed to do, and he was very gracious,” said Rev. Charles Kouba, a priest at nearby Sts. Cyril and Methodius in the 1970s. As the neighborhood became increasingly Hispanic, Father Wasiel taught himself Spanish, listening to records and taking vacations to Mexico for practice, his sister said.
Kouba remembered being surprised when he saw his fellow priest, who as a younger priest gave sermons in Polish, putting his Spanish lessons to use.
“He did amazingly well” with his Hispanic parishioners, said Bishop Timothy Lyne, vicar for senior priests for the archdiocese.
Father Wasiel was born in St. John Cantius parish on the Near North Side to Polish immigrant parents who moved the family to Harvey when he was 6. His path to priesthood started at Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago. “He always had that calling,” Wojtczak said.
From south suburban Harvey, Father Wasiel would take a commuter train downtown, then walk to Quigley on the Near North Side so he could save carfare and give any extra money to his parents, his sister said.
His father was a factory worker but the family still struggled, making any extra comforts much appreciated. “He built the first radio my mom had,” Wojtczak said.
He attended the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary and then served at several predominantly Polish parishes in Chicago, including St. Barbara and St. Casimir.
Following his retirement, Father Wasiel lived in Harvey and cared for his mother, who died in 1989. He later lived with his sister before moving into Holy Family Villa earlier this year.
Father Wasiel is also survived by two other sisters, Bernice Duda and Helen Palczak.
Mass will be said at 10 a.m. Wednesday in St. John the Baptist Church, 15746 Union Ave., Harvey.
