St Marys High School - Blue Mantle Yearbook (Milford, MA)

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Rev. William J. Foran and his faithful companion, Carina.

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Sfe Jrisllp auiitr On the road to Hopkinton from Milford, are found eight or more beautiful acres of land dedicated to the dead from St. Mary’s Parish in Milford. Set back from the road and facing a small pond,rises a tall,slender tower of native granite. The tower, with its tiny windows near the very summit and rising aloft toward the sky,yet framed in a cluster of trees, reminds me of Milton f s description of Windsor Castle ’’bosomed high in tufted trees.” The reflection of the tower is de¬ lightfully mirrored in the pool at its feet, clear and symmetrical. That tower is unique, not only in Milford, but in the whole United States, for it is the only one of its kind in America. It is an Irish Round Tower, so-called because they were found hundreds of years ago, yes,even back to the nineth and tenth centuries, dotting the green shamrock-threaded hills of Ireland. They range in height from fifty to a hundred feet and can be seen for miles around. Why they were built or who built them, still remains somewhat of a mys¬ tery, even to the Irish people themselves. To the sons and daugh¬ ters of the ”Ould sod’ 1 ,, they are familiar landmarks so it was not surprising that a true son of Old Erin should erect in the cemetery of St. Mary’s in Milford, a replica of an Irish Round Tower. The particular model used was that of Glendalough. Its interested buil¬ der was the Reverend Patrick Cudclihy,the first pastor of St. Mary’s Church. It stands today,a perfect tribute to his zeal for the faith in the country of his adoption. The fragile loveliness of this Round Tower, as it stands re¬ flected in the pool of clear water,reminds us of the calm peace and quiet of the consecrated ground within which it stands, re-echoing the calmness and peacefulness of our heavenly home in the blue vauLt over head. The beauty of this Gothic gem lifts my sorrowful thoughts of the dead to their high home above and with Christina Rossetti, it bids me say: ”Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land. Yet if you should forget me for a v hile, And afterwards remember, do not grieve. Better by far you should forget and smile, Than that you should rememger and be sad.” Jean Clement ’45

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©tori Art A Priest ? O Prom Sacred Heart,Gardner, just about three years ago, came a very scholarly,saintly priest to bo Pastor of St, Mary’s,Milford, Prom his first entrance into the school, and his frequent and wel¬ come visits to the Senior classroom,we realized how aptly those two adjectives applied to our beloved. Father William J. Foran. His scholarliness was evidenced in his keen knowledge and personal interest in our studies, especially his favorite, Latin. In fear and trembling,we listened to the words of wisdom which fell from his lips, making practical applications for us of a Latin vo¬ cabulary. In his many stories of the Saints and especially his memor¬ ies of his studies and travels at Rome, at the famous American Col¬ lege, ho kept our attention rapt for hours at a time. Ho. often kept us enthralled with his wonderful store of knowledge. His heart sad¬ dened as he mentioned the many places once so familiar to him, that are now in ruins, the result of the greed for power on the part of the two demagogues of Germany and Italy, His stories many times centered around the love of his heart for Our Lady, particularly Our Lady of Lourdes and Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal. His devotion has taken material shape in the beautiful Chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Love and Beauty by the children of St. Mary’s High and Grammar Schools. ”Our tainted na¬ ture’s solitary boast” is enthroned in an alcove in the rear of the Chapel and past her no one walks without an ”Ave” to her who is the Queen of the Clergy. Every priest is a man united to God. His heart is a daily sanctuary for the Real Presence. Therefore, in virtue of his Holy Orders, he has in his heart the Divine Spark which lights the fer¬ vor and faith of the people of his flock. By his divine power, though human, he absolves us from our sins and he daily ascends the altar of Calvary to plead for his people like Melchisodoch of old. There we ask him to remember his children from St. Mary ' s and es¬ pecially the Class of 1945., who will always remember him with kind¬ ness and gratitude for his personal interest In us. Wo, too, shall remember him there ’’where remembrances are sacred and each memory is a prayer.” God bless you and spare you to us, Father Foran, for many years to come l Ad multos annos I Mary Teixeira ' 45