Monsignor Ignatius McDermott dies

[Texsox]

Sun-Times Link

 

He walked Chicago's streets ministering to, by some estimates, thousands of Chicagoans addicted to drugs and alcohol.

 

Along the way, Monsignor Ignatius D. McDermott -- forever known as Father Mac -- became known as the city's living saint.

 

As he aged, those who worked closely with the Roman Catholic priest and founder of Haymarket Center, a drug and alcohol rehab facility on the city's near West Side, suggested he slow down.

 

His response? "I can always rest in eternity."

 

On Friday, friends believed he found that final resting place.

 

Father Mac died after a short illness about 11 a.m. Friday. He was 95.

 

He followed sports avidly, particularly his beloved White Sox. The Sox was the team for Irish Catholics because it was South Side and Catholic-owned. More than 70 years later, McDermott recalled a day in the mid-1920s when Babe Ruth came to Comiskey Park. As a kid he went with his father and brothers to see the Bambino. They brought their own home-made lemonade. As the time came when Ruth moved up to bat, little Ignatius who had been imbibing too much lemonade had to respond to nature's call and walked down the bleachers to the restroom below. His brothers, Al and Mike, shouted: "You're crazy! Babe's coming up to bat! You'll miss it!" No use and as he moved down through the stands, Ignatius groaned at the lost opportunity. Then, as the stands above him roared with excitement, Ruth hit a mighty blow. The ball rocketed through the stands and rolled at his feet on the ground floor of Comiskey at the door of the men's room. When he climbed back to the bleachers, his brothers yelled, "You missed it!" But he didn't. He held Ruth's ball aloft. He told that story for 85 years.

 

Matthew 25:21

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!’