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funeral. “His faith was very important to him, and he always tried to be the best person he could be,” MaryAnn Waskelis said. Kevin and his mother praised St. Thomas and its parishioners, and the Knights of Columbus for their support during Mr. Waskelis’ illness and death. “They have been so wonderful. They’ve made everything so much easier for us. They just have given us so much support, and the Knights of
that is something we thought we would never see. That helped ease the pain,” Kevin said. In addition to Kevin and MaryAnn, Father Doug Owens, pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle, spent time with Mr. Waskelis in preparation for his death. Father Owens was the celebrant at Mr. Waskelis’ funeral, and Kevin noted that one of his father’s best friends from Michigan drove to Lenoir City to serve as a deacon for the
Columbus have done so much for us,” said MaryAnn Waskelis, who noted that those memories of the family going to Cubs games and conventions are so much more precious now. At the funeral, Kevin and his mother displayed a picture of the family at Wrigley Field in Chicago and Mr. Waskelis’ hat from the 1991 Cubs convention. Also, a Knoxville man who had read Mr. Seidel’s column sent the Waskelises a program and towel from Game 4 of the World Series.
goodness came directly from Jesus Christ, who was the good and innocent man who died on the cross for our sins. He said the priesthood is a great legacy of service to leave to the world. “Joe never took that lightly.” “Father Joe did his darndest to serve God and the Church and the holy people of God well. He was not perfect; none of us are. But he was faithful, and because of his faithfulness, so many people now know a little bit about the greatness of God. Joe now needs God, desires God, and so is with God. So until we get to be together again, I’m sure he would say something cute, funny, and outdoorsy. But I have nothing. I’ll just say Godspeed, my brother,” Father Harvey concluded, his voice breaking with emotion. Bishop Stika said Father Campbell had rods placed in his back to help him stand tall again and was proud of that. He said the big and tall priest maintained his sense of humor during his health ordeals, noting that recently he remarked to Father Campbell about orthopedic screws placed in Father Campbell’s neck. “And he told me, ‘Yes, now I really do have a screw loose.’” Bishop Stika also recalled a recent conversation he had with Father Campbell as the priest convalesced in which the bishop asked Father Campbell to retire due to health
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Celebrating the boat Mass In this photo from July 2013, Father Campbell cel-
ebrates Mass on Norris Lake for boaters who vacation at the lake.
concerns. “If I didn’t do that, he would push himself to try to come back because he always wanted to come back sooner. In fact, he would check himself out of hospitals and rehab centers and push himself to return to his pastoral responsibilities, and when he gave me advice on how I should have handled the situation, he told me, ‘Bishop, I’m not a very patient man.’ I said, ‘No kidding, Joe!’” “When I first met him seven years ago, he said, ‘You know, I love LaFollette and Tazewell; I love the people there.’ He loved that assignment. So all of you from Tazewell and LaFollette, he loved you all. He was beginning to enjoy his relationship with the people from St. Henry in
Rogersville. And he loved the people from St. John Neumann,” Bishop Stika said. “In all those assignments, he may have not been a great theologian by academic standards, but he was a true man of God because he incorporated the Scriptures and the teachings of the Church as a true priest. I understand he was a great confessor and a very spiritual pastor. He loved the beauty of nature, and he made things with his hands like St. Joseph did. He would tell stories, like Jesus did.” Bishop Stika said that while Father Campbell’s immediate family was small in number, his extended family was the Church, reflective of true celibacy in giving himself totally to the Church. He was a man who gave
The Diocese of Knoxville Living our Roman Catholic faith in East Tennessee
“It was such a kind gesture. We have never met him,” Kevin said. As he reflected on all that has taken place since Oct. 6, Kevin was asked what his father’s reaction would have been to the Cubs winning Game 7 of the 2016 World Series in such a dramatic way. “He would have been like me, breaking down and crying; tears of joy, not knowing exactly what to do because we’ve never been in this position before.” ■
his life to the Church and formed a special bond with fellow priests and deacons. “It’s a special fraternity and a special bond,” the bishop noted as he pointed out all the priests and deacons in attendance at the funeral Mass. Bishop Stika described Father Campbell as “a man of magnificence” whose heart was big. Bishop Stika said that as Father Campbell neared death at Parkwest Medical Center in Knoxville, those keeping vigil during his final moments knew Father Campbell could feel their presence. “It was time. … And Joe passed from this life to the next. Hopefully he heard the words, ‘Hey Big Guy, I have waited for you and now you have come’ just as Pope John Paul II said in his last moments, ‘I have waited for you and you have come.’ To my brother Joseph, I say to you thank you for your life, an interesting life that allowed you to be a good priest of Jesus Christ. We pray that you may now be free of pain, free from illness, with the humility that God taught you in these last years through illness, which is a humility that all of us should believe in and allow ourselves to be cared for by God and our sisters and brothers. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.” ■ dioknox.org