On Jack Farrell's Legacy
John Joslin, a past Development Director at St. Paul’s Monastery was the first to introduce Jack Farrell to the then-Prioress, Sister Lucia Schwickerath. John invited Mr. Farrell to the Monastery and Sister Lucia gave him a tour of the grounds. This was before the addition of the St. Benedict statue and paving stones that are now placed between the Monastery courtyard and cemetery.
Sister Lucia brought Jack to this location and told him that they were in the cemetery, but Jack couldn’t tell as each Sisters’ headstone is flat. His response was, “Where?” He was then concerned that the Sacred Grounds should somehow be more differentiated.
Sister Lucia remarked on the statues currently located around the Monastery. Saying the Sisters had a St. Joseph, St. Francis, and the Grotto, but no St. Benedict. It was something she always envisioned. “I can’t wait until we have one,” she said.
The two continued on their tour and talked more. After some time passed, Jack said out of nowhere, “Let’s do it.” Sister Lucia had to ask him what he meant. When he asked her for an artist recommendation she understood and knew the exact artist to do the work. She had seen some of Linda Dabeau’s work already, a very strong looking statue of St. Peter.
Linda Dabeau was definitely a good choice as she gathered with all the Sisters to get to know who St. Benedict was as a person before producing the statue that you see on the Monastery grounds today. As time went on, Jack Farrell and Sister Lucia maintained their connection through annual visits. Sister Lucia would visit him in his very simple, windowless, corner office. She would bring the muffins and he would tell the stories from when he was young and worked in a drug store.
Sister Lucia deeply mourns his passing. Jack is someone who had a lot in common with the Sisters. She loved his simplicity and professionalism and shared his love for those who had less. She always felt he was very personable and had wanted him to do a wine-tasting at the Monastery. This event happened for the first time last year in 2023, and is scheduled again for Christmas at the Monastery this year.
Last year, Jack Farrell arrived at the Christmas at the Monastery wine-tasting with his son Ted, the two looking remarkably similar. Jack himself was quiet and let Ted do a lot of the talking. Nonetheless he commanded a presence and you could tell he was enjoying himself. Maybe that was because he had something important to announce. While we can’t go into details about that news just yet, suffice to say that Jack Farrell left a legacy here with the Sisters and will be missed.
Melinda Markell, OblSB is the Marketing and Communications Coordinator for St. Paul’s Monastery and its Benedictine Center (since 2022).