Seven decades after ordination, priest lives the simple life

Rev. Anthony DeFranco, pastor emeritus of St. Anthony's Church in Schenectady, marked the 70th anniversary of his ordination by celebrating Mass in the rectory with other retired priests, then going out to dinner with friends.

"We went to Cornell's to celebrate," he said. "I had the salad, chicken Milanese, a little pasta, dessert, coffee and a lot of conversation."

Although this celebration was small and quiet, his ordination and the anniversary had much in common. The day he was ordained was hot.

"It was 95 in the shade," he recalled. "It was like the weather we've been having."

Although Father DeFranco's family lived only five blocks from the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany, the priest's brother offered to pick him up and drive him home for the family celebration.

Father DeFranco declined, as it would only be a short walk home.

"After the ordination I had lunch with Bishop Gibbons at the chancery," Father DeFranco recalled. "It stormed and there was lightning. My family didn't have a phone, so I couldn't call my brother for a ride and I had to call a cab. I took a cab five blocks."

Marking the milestone

The 95-year-old priest will formally celebrate his anniversary in September with a parish Mass concelebrated by Bishop Howard Hubbard and other priests of the Diocese and then a parish reception.

Father DeFranco said the parish celebration of his ordination had to wait until the fall because of the feast of St. Anthony.

Each year, the Schenectady parish has a major three-day celebration in honor of their patron saint. Known as "Festa," it draws people from around the city and beyond for food, music and games.

It would have been difficult, the priest explained, to plan for two major events in one parish one week apart.

Father DeFranco has spent most of his priesthood at St. Anthony's, first as an assistant from 1939-'55, then returning as pastor from 1969-'81.

At the Festa, he reconnects with the families, and cuisine, he has known throughout his seven clerical decades.

"First, I like the food," he said. "But I also like to see the people. People come back for it. I see people whose marriages I witnessed and the babies I baptized."

The priest, who will turn 96 in August, enjoys simply showing up. "I go to all of the affairs at St. Anthony's," he noted, "and a lot of funerals."

Since giving up driving in January, he now relies on friends for transportation. "My nephew helps me and the other priests help me," he said.

Out and about

The life of a retired priest can be quiet, he said. A typical day for him is to say Mass with the other retired priests in the rectory, pray the Rosary several times a day, pray the Breviary and read spiritual texts. He takes phone calls from family and friends.

On warm days, he will go out on the rectory patio to watch the children at St. John the Evangelist School romp on the playground

"I have no duties at the parish," he said. "I can't easily get around. I pass the day praying." In brief, he joked, "Retired priests pray and go to the drugstore to get all of their medicines."

He will also watch television, especially if the Yankees are playing. He recalled one of his godsons asking him if he knew who Babe Ruth was. The priest told him, "Know him? I saw him play in Yankee Stadium and when he came to Albany."

Childhood and longevity

Father DeFranco played baseball as a child, but not as children today play the game in their organized, uniformed ranks: "There was no Little League and no CYO. We played sandlot baseball."

The priest also worked as a child. When he was nine he began selling newspapers and had that job until he started high school. Then he worked in a shoe store as an errand boy. By working through his youth he earned enough money to pay for his first year at the College of the Holy Cross, he said.

Father DeFranco isn't the only member of his family to live so long. His other brother and sisters lived well into their 80s and 90s. His one remaining living sister will turn 103 in September.

"She has a memory like an elephant," he said. "She writes better than I do."

The only family member to die young was the priest's father. "My father died at 46 of double pneumonia," he said. "There were no antibiotics then. I had a happy life, but it was hard growing up without a father."

Father DeFranco credits God and good genes for his long life. To those wishing to follow in his footsteps and reach a ripe old age, the priest advised, "Love God and be happy."

(06/19/08)