| CURIA GENERALIZIA MARIANISTI Rome, May 20, 2005 Death Notice No. 8 (To all Unit Administrations) The Province of the United States of America recommends to our fraternal prayers our dear Brother, NORMAN ECKL, who died in the service of the Blessed Virgin Mary on May 14, 2005, in Dayton, Ohio, in the 79th year of his age and the 59th year of his religious profession. Brother Norman Eckl was born on December 17, 1926, in Buffalo, New York, to Charles and Magdalen Schmitt Eckl. He grew up with his brother, Edward, and sisters, Mary Ann and Dorothy, and attended St. Gerard’s School and Burgard Vocational High School. Brother Norman professed his first vows on August 18, 1946, in Beacon, New York, and his perpetual vows on August 17, 1950, in Dayton. Brother Norman’s ministry was spent in the trades. He cared for the barn and cattle at the Mount St. John property in Dayton, where he also was a licensed boiler engineer, maintenance worker, physical plant superintendent and supervisor for the design and construction of the Bergamo Center for Lifelong Learning. Brother Norman was a boiler engineer and maintenance worker for Chaminade Preparatory in Marcy, New York, and a maintenance worker and boiler engineer for the University of Dayton, a position he held for 26 years. After he retired in 1991, he continued to work as a groundskeeper and devoted more time to his avocation as a ceramic artist. In remarks commemorating the 50th anniversary of his profession in the Society of Mary, Brother Norman said: “Prayer is the cornerstone of all we do and hope to achieve in our ministry. It is the fuel that keeps our motor running.” Fellow brothers said Brother Norman was good-humored, straightforward and an excellent mentor. “Norm was like a father to me,” said Brother Jack Somerville. “He took me under his wing and taught me lessons you couldn’t find in books. “‘Anybody can quit,’ he told me once, when I couldn’t get an electrical circuit to work,” Brother Jack continued. “Norm went back to the site with me to show me how it was done.” “Norm had a gift for sharing his time, interests, family and friends,” said Brother Tom Payne. “He graciously turned the things he loved over to you.” Brother Norman died of pneumonia at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. May he rest in peace.
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