The Lumen Vitae

honoring service to christ and his church

Virgil & Ann Dechant by John Dechant Dan & Terri Carey by Steve Johnson & J.D. Benning

Virgil & Ann Dechant

From the plains of Kansas, Virgil Dechant ascended to the highest office of the Knights of Columbus, the world’s foremost Catholic fraternal benefit society. Amazingly, his path to such heights began as a result of a nasty car accident along a quiet western Kansas road.

Virgil was 18 and working for a western Kansas auto dealer in 1949. A car wreck sent him to the hospital, where he was treated for a broken hip and other complications. Even after his discharge from the hospital, he was sent back in to recover after an allergic reaction to the pins that had been surgically inserted into his hip. Virgil had recently joined the St. Augustine Council of the Knights of Columbus in his native town of Liebenthal, and members of that council stopped by almost every night to help him pass the time during his grueling recovery. He was so touched by the gesture he vowed to devote more of himself to the council once he healed.

Virgil rose fast in the Knights of Columbus, becoming a grand knight in his local council, then a district deputy, and, in 1960, state deputy of the Kansas State Council. His work as a state deputy caught the attention of numerous senior members of the Kansas State Council and members of the Supreme Council in New Haven, Conn., where the Order had been founded by Fr. Michael J. McGivney in 1882.

In 1967 K of C Supreme Knight John McDevitt asked Virgil to come to New Haven to work for the Order full-time. The offer put him in a bind – he had become a successful auto and implement dealer in La Crosse, and he had started acquiring sections of farmland as he looked to diversify his business interests. Plus, he had a family to consider: his wife Ann and their four young children.

After much discernment, Virgil received a helpful piece of advice from Bishop Marion Forst of the Diocese of Dodge City who told him he’d regret it if he bypassed such an opportunity. Plus, if things didn’t work out in Connecticut, he could always come back to Kansas. So off the Dechants went.

Virgil’s rise up the corporate ladder in New Haven came nearly as fast as his rise through the Kansas State Council. This was aided in part through the work he did modernizing the K of C insurance business and growing its membership. In 1977, he replaced McDevitt as supreme knight of the Order. He would hold the position for 23 years.

Under Virgil’s leadership, membership in the Knights of Columbus would grow to more than 1.6 million and local councils jumped to more than 11,000. K of C insurance would earn top ratings on an annual basis from Standard & Poor’s and A.M. Best. By the time of his 2000 retirement, the K of C insurance program had $40 billion of life insurance in force and $8.5 billion in assets.

While his business savvy was unquestioned, perhaps Virgil’s greatest contribution to the Knights of Columbus was transforming the Order from a men’s organization to a modern, family-first organization. This effort actually began back in Kansas during his days as a state deputy, where he insisted that Ann join him at all K of C functions. Soon others followed suit and started bringing their wives along to meetings; then they began bringing their children. Virgil and Ann brought this same vision with them to New Haven, and since, the Knights of Columbus has prospered.

Virgil and Ann also strengthened the ties between the Knights of Columbus and the Holy See. The order was instrumental in the 1982 construction of a chapel in the basement of St. Peter’s Basilica to honor Saints Benedict, Cyril and Methodius—the patron saints of Europe, and the 1985-86 renovations to the façade of St. Peter’s Basilica, which hadn’t been touched in hundreds of years. In 1982, the Knights of Columbus created the Vicarius Christi Foundation—the brainchild of Virgil—to provide funds annually to the Pope for his personal charities. Together, Virgil and Ann were named to the Pontifical Council for the Family

So strong was the relationship between the Dechants and Pope John Paul II, in 1987 the Holy Fr. granted Virgil the title of “Gentleman of His Holiness,” making him a member of the Pontifical Lay Family. He served in this role during the pontiff’s 2005 funeral, escorting U.S. President George W. Bush and other dignitaries at the funeral.

In 2012, the Knights of Columbus awarded Virgil the Gaudium et Spes Award, its highest honor, joining a prestigious list of past recipients which include Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

Virgil and Ann Dechant returned to Kansas in 2001, where they still live today. They have four children, 11 grandchildren, and four greatgrandchildren.

During his service as Supreme Knight, Virgil & Ann made frequent trips to the Vatican, meeting with the Holy Father about how the Knights of Columbus could best serve the Church.

Dan and Terri Carey have been dedicated to Catholic education for many years. A 1968 graduate of St. Benedict’s College (now Benedictine College), Dan returned to his alma mater in 1995 to serve as president. Terri, with a Master’s degree in Reading, was the beloved librarian at Atchison Catholic Elementary School. The two were instrumental in the turnaround that saw Benedictine College grow from a struggling institution with fewer than 700 students to the nationally recognized Catholic college with more than 1,800 students it is today.

In his speech at the Abbot’s Table, Dan reflected on life as a student at St. Benedict’s college: “A young priest, Fr. Barnabas Senecal, was our prefect on 3rd floor of Freshman Hall. The History Dept. was world class featuring Fr. Victor, Fr. Columba, Fr. Peter, and Fr. Roy. Fr. Hilary Heim was the Dean and Fr. Alcuin was the President. Fr. Eugene & Fr. Conrad helped students get into [medical] school. Coach Nolan and Coach Samuels’ basketball teams won a national championship in 1967 and Quarter Finals another year. We never missed a game. Opposing teams described the gym environment with the monks lined up on one end and the snake pit student section on the other end as playing between “heaven and hell!”

In addition to steady enrollment growth during Dan’s tenure as president, Benedictine College saw the renovation of the longabandoned Freshman Hall into the state-of-the-art residence facility now known as Elizabeth Hall. The monastic community was overjoyed to see the restoration of the historic building that served as the monastery until 1929. Dan also led the effort to complete the Student Union, construct the football stadium, renovate the Haverty Center including the return of the original Raven Roost, as well as the completion of St. Scholastica Plaza and additions to the Amino Center. It was also during this time that the college began the Discovery Program and created the Executive Master’s in Business Administration curriculum. Financially, Dan was able to grow the college’s endowment and saw the first profit in many years.

Terri was celebrated for her service as the librarian at Atchison Catholic Elementary School; she was lauded by many parents for her skills as an educator. Kelly Vowels, Vice President for Advancement at Benedictine College, was grateful for the role that Terri played in the education of her own children, “Terri was able to create a fabulous reading program; my children greatly benefited from Terri and her love of reading. The students knew when they walked into the library that Mrs. Carey was going to love [them] and help them.”

Marlys Haverty, a Benedictine College parent and supporter, felt that Terri was a great example for the students, “Terri embodies the idea of Benedictine hospitality.” Chris and Matt Carey, sons of Dan and Terri and Benedictine College Alumni, would often bring friends over to the president’s house, located on the west side of the campus, and Terri would welcome them and often host students for dinner. She was highly regarded as Benedictine’s “First Lady” and was known for her engaging personality, creativity and the warm Benedictine hospitality she extended to every guest at college events, many held in the president’s home.

In accepting the Lumen Vitae Dan reflected on his time as president: “I was initially thrilled to be appointed as President of Benedictine College. That thrill soon turned to fear. The first year I was not sure the college would survive. Fortunately, we were able to strengthen our Board and our Administrative team, energize our alums and share our vision for a thriving Benedictine College. We had a lot of help in the early years of beautifying the campus. The Ferrells helped us save Freshman Hall from the wrecking ball. More importantly, that restoration was critical in restoring hope and confidence in our students and our alums. Built by the monks in the 1890s as the Abbey, this historic structure is the anchor of campus. Mick and Marlys Haverty brought a vision for the Raven Roost which reflected their respect for history and tradition and their love of art. In the end, it’s about all of us working together in order to leave a special college, an abbey, or a monastery better than we found it: knowing we are only stewards for a short period of time.” Dr. Carey served in the military in Vietnam eventually rising to the rank of Colonel in the United States Air Force.

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the Abbot’s Table

april 22, 2017 sheraton crown center -kansas city, mo.

Dan & Terri moved to Atchison in 1995 with their sons Chris and Matt. Dan was proud to have his sons receive the same Benedictine education that he had received.