December 173 In 1976, Father BRONISLAUS VALPITRS (Val-pih-trs) died at the age of 77 in Viļāni, Latvia. He was a priest for 55 years and a religious for 53. He was a Professor of theology at the University of Riga, Latvia. One of the first Latvians in our Congregation, he became the first Provincial Superior of the Latvian Province, erected in 1940, and held this office until 1975 because of the political situation. He was also exiled to Siberia for seven years. Upon his return to Latvia, although broken in health, he dedicated himself to pastoral activity. Later, he became the spiritual director at the Riga Seminary. He is buried in Viļāni. In 2005, Father HENRY UTYKAŃSKI (Oo-tih-kahn-ski) died in Curitiba (Cur-a-chee-ba) at the age of 69. He was a priest for 44 years and a religious for 4. He was originally a priest of the Diocese of Siedlce (Shedults-eh). Starting in 1980, he served in Brazil and taught pastoral theology, Latin, and Greek at the diocesan seminary. After joining our Congregation in 2001, he served as a parish Vicar in Manoel Ribas and Rio de Janeiro. He is buried in the Marian Fathers’ cemetery in Curitiba. December 15 On December 15, 2007, Father BOGUMIL (TEÓFILO) LUBECKI (Loo-bets-kee) died in Mongaguá (Moan-ga-gua), Brazil at the age of 76. He was a religious for 54 years and a priest for 42. He served for four years in Poland and was then assigned to teach Latin and French at our minor seminary in Portugal. After this, he served as a missionary in Brazil for over 35 years, where he was a Pastor and assisted in pastoral ministry in Jaguariaíva (Jaguar-ia-eva), Curitiba (Cur-a-chee-ba), and Mongaguá. He is buried in the Marian Fathers’ cemetery in Curitiba. December 16 On December 16, 1861, Father CHARLES IWASZEWSKI (Ee-vashev-ski), a member of the monastery in Miroslavas, died at the age of 36 while serving as a chaplain in the village of Święte Jeziory (Shvyen-teh Ye-zhor-ih) and is buried there. In 1959, Brother ANDREW STEPONAVIČIUS (Ste-po-na-vee-choos), a member of the American Province of St. Casimir, died at the age of 89 in a Chicago hospital. He was a religious for 30 years, worked in the Draugas print shop, and was known for his piety, obedience, and patience. He is buried in the Marian Fathers' section of St. Casimir Cemetery in Chicago.
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