A very wonderful resident - an old farmer - came to the desk yesterday and handed me a book that he wanted me to read. He said he's read it three times and has really enjoyed it. It's called "Stories from the Heart" and it's written by a priest. Most of them are just one page "feel-good" stories but a few of them sparked a little thought from me.
The one that really got me was a story of a priest who was giving a retreat at a high school. When it was over, a young lady came up to him and asked him if he had ever heard of the fire at Our Lady of the Angels in Chicago. He replied that yes, he did hear of it. She showed him a large scar on her leg and told him that she was just a little girl in first grade on the day of the fire. When the nuns realized that the school was on fire, they tried to get as many children as possible to jump to save them. She was too short to get up on the ledge but another girl was in front of her and actually half-way out the window when she came back in and pulled this little girl up in front of her . She jumped and landed safely but when she looked up, the window was totally engulfed in flames. That young girl died saving her. She never forgot that act of heroism.
Years ago, I did read the book about this fire. For some reason, I'm drawn to this because I was only 5 years old when it happened and I also went to a Catholic school. Add to that, as a mother I just cannot imagine what that day must have been like for those parents. There is a picture in the book of the parents standing underneath the windows while the school is on fire. You can just imagine how frightened they must have been until they found out about the fate of their children. It was one of the saddest books that I've ever read. Today, I did some searching and found this site and began to read it. It really confirmed the above mentioned story in this article. They never did prosecute the two boys that they thought did it . Here is what the site says about that:
"While there was strong evidence that he was indeed the culprit, neither he nor anyone else was ever prosecuted, at least in part because the catholic judge in the case felt he should protect the Church." Evidently the school passed a fire inspection just a few weeks before but there were many "grandfathered" things that were overlooked.
At any rate, the important thing here is that this young lady was saved by another and truly made the words of St. John ring true: "Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
Here is another thing to consider. This is the "poster child" from that fire. He was 10 years old when he died that day. His ambition was to be a priest. Think for a moment if that would have happened. The chances are he would have been lost in the bogus ordo. This way, he was almost assured of heaven:
This photograph became the defining image of the Our Lady of the Angels fire, seen around the world, and made into a moving fire prevention poster.
John was an accomplished musician - he played the accordion and sang in the boy's choir. He planned to be a priest.
Photo ©1958, Life Magazine
On this page are stories of survivors. They are heart-wrenching stories and memories. I plan to spend a little time reading some of them and thanking God that He used this incident for some good.
I also clearly remember this fire, was a bit older than you at the time. Only those in 'firemen's families' can know how devastating it is to these fine men when deaths occur in a fire they are battling, and it is so much worse when it is a child or children. Very little talking for at least a week... I can only imagine what it was for those firefigthers. You can see it in this man's face - but those who were Catholics would have had the consolation those children were most likely in Heaven.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the post.
I did a little more searching on the site last night and had to stop. The children who survived never got over it and they were forced to keep everything in. There was no counseling for anyone. That's the way it was in those days.
ReplyDeleteYou are right about the firemen also. If you look at the "Photo" section, you will see many pictures of them bringing the deceased children down from the second floor and it's just heartbreaking! Some of them disintegrated in their arms!! As a mother I just couldn't bear looking at it anymore.
Many saints were born that day and that is the only way anyone can accept this great tragedy. That turns a tragedy into a glory....
We had just returned from our Thanksgiving holiday. After returning to our classroom after Mass, Sister Carmalin, with tears streaming down her cheeks, told the class about the terrible fire at a Catholic School in Chicago. I'll never forget that day and how that news deeply affected us all. Sister told us that there would be a short prayer vigil in the church at recess time and anyone who wished to join in could. We all did. No one went out to recess that day, not even the class bullies. It was a very somber day.
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