Friar Ed Arambasich
Order of Friars Minor

I was born in Joliet, Illinois, on October 7, 1951, on two feasts, Our Lady of the Rosary and the feast of Sts.. Sergus and Baucus, early Roman martyrs. I grew up as a member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church operated by the OFM's. I went to St. Ann (now Ambrose) Catholic School in Crest Hill, IL, under the Benedictine Sisters of Lisle, IL. At the end of my 7th grade year my parents transferred us kids to St. John the Baptist grade school under the Franciscan Sister of Mary Immaculate, Joliet, IL. I graduated from Joliet Catholic High School in ‘69; JCH was operated by the Carmelite Friars of the Most Pure Heart of Mary Province. I thank God each day for my Catholic education. I am so blessed to have only good memories of warm and caring Sisters that taught me, each one of them had grace, love and joy for us students. The Franciscan and Carmelite friars where the same, they had a spirit of love and compassion, I was blessed!

I wanted to enter religious life as soon as I graduated from high school, but my dad made me wait until I was 20, (a wise man) so until then I became a member of the Ironworkers Union, Local 444, Joliet, from 1969-72. I entered the Benedictine Abbey of St. Procopius, Lisle, in 1972. I was assigned to work in the garden, guest house, tailor, porter, refectory, sacristan, assistant novice master, cantor and also to do ministry at Benet Academy (the former St. Procopius Academy), where I was Bookstore Manager, Parents Club moderator, assistant Dean of discipline, founder of the Marian Society, (for young women) the Sacred Heart Society (for young women), and moderator of the St. Wenceslaus Servers Society, for young men) founded by Father Peter Mizera, OSB, in 1917. In 1982 with the help of Father Robert Buday, OSB, and Father Julian VonDerbeck, OSB, we founded the Christian Service Outreach and the Campus Ministry program.

When I was 38 years old I began to feel a desire to be more apostolic in my life, my dear friends Sheila Jacklich, Maureen Haywood and my sister Lori Arambasich keep encouraging me along with Opera Winfiry! Finally when it came to say something to the abbot I was ready, and my heart wanted to be free.

Abbot Hugh Anderson, OSB, encouraged me to find summer ministry in the city of Chicago and so I did, I found Mercy Home for Boys and Girls a place that I fell in love with. It was in that place that I felt a strong desire to move on from monastic life. After many hours of prayer, a talking to Brother Pius, FSC, I finally was going to make a life changing move in my call to serve. On June 4, 1992 I leapt over the cloister wall and joined my first love the Franciscan Friars. My mother told me before she died in November of 1991, “when you walk out, don’t look back, look forward, I will walk with you on this journey, you will be just fine” and she was so right!

The monks of St. Procopius prepared me in a very caring way to be a man of deep prayer but the vow of stability was the heaviest cross I bore for twenty years and I have a deep respect for my monastic brothers for persevering until death.

So in my journey to the friars I can only thank God for my brothers Friar Ed Shea, OFM, Friar Bill Spencer, OFM, Friar Herb Jones, OFM, and Friar Allan DeCorte, OFM, I transferred religious orders in 1992 to the Franciscans of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Province, St. Louis, Missouri.

I then spent three years in Joliet, 1992-1994, as a school teacher's aide, at St. John's Parish, 1994-2004, seven years in New Orleans as a District Fire Chaplain, 2002-2003 one year in San Francisco as a Fire Department Chaplain and since 2003 with the Quincy Fire Department.

Other ministries were at Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, in Youth Ministry studies, McFarland Pastoral Counseling, New Orleans, LA, for Police and Fire Ministry, Critical Pastoral Care Ministry.

For hobbies, I enjoy cooking, cards, movies, travel, camping, fishing, and sewing.

My late father, Ed, Sr., lived in Ft. Myers, Florida, after my mother, Joann, died in 1992. Both are buried in Romeoville, Illinois. My brother, Tom, lives in Joliet and is a Will County Sheriff Police Officer; my sister, Pam, and her husband, Jeff, own a restaurant in the Ft.. Myers, Florida area; sister, Lori, and her husband Rick live in Morris, Illinois. Lori works at St. Joseph Hospital and Rick is a Postal worker.

I have the honor of being the first Chaplain of the Quincy Fire Department. I am blessed to be able to pastor such a wonderful and caring congregation. The Firefighters, Administration and staff are made up of people who are caring, courageous and supportive of our city of Quincy. God bless our Fire Department.

I am also on the Campus Ministry team at Quincy University and a resident campus minister in Centennial Hall.

I am the local guardian (religious superior) of the Holy Cross friar fraternity.

firechaplainqfd@aol.com