(St. Mike’s is getting ready for reunion, which runs this year from May 30 to June 2. Today we hear from Bob Shiley, who, as he notes, gets to attend two reunions, thanks to what was known as the Western year.)
Bob Shiley grew up in downstate Illinois before moving to Chicago, and ultimately, to Toronto. He attended the University of Toronto for his undergraduate degree and received his MBA from the University of Chicago. After a stint in the U.S. Army where he “fought the war” at Fort Knox, he became a Production Planning Manager at Baxter and at National Rubber with terms at each company twice. Since 1990, he has been an Executive Recruiter at Brethet, Barnum and Associates, focusing on life sciences sales and marketing. He is an active parishioner at St. Gregory’s Church where, along with his wife, Anne, he is a lector, lay Eucharistic minister, and heads up the parish’s outreach to the Good Shepherd Refuge.
God has been in business a long, long time; and He really knows what He’s doing. I am ever thankful for His guiding me to St. Michael’s College, as it has been a gift that has kept giving over the past 60 years, and it’s the reason I am where I am both literally and figuratively.
After graduation from a Jesuit high school in the United States in 1964 and scouting universities in the northeast, my parents and I narrowed it down to three schools: Georgetown, Boston College, and the University of Toronto. I found the first too snooty; Mom and Dad didn’t think BC’s academic reputation was that great; and we all loved St. Mike’s in the University of Toronto, where two cousins of mine had attended. What a great choice it was!
Even before arriving on campus, there were blessings. The first, getting to meet Joe Crowley, who boarded the Toronto-bound train in South Bend, Indiana. Our deep friendship has lasted to this day, and that includes his wife, Tricia, also a member of our Western Class (the equivalent of Grade 13 in those days), which Fr. Bob Madden rightfully called “the class with brass.” Not sure what it was about us early postwar baby boomers, but we did make a lot of noise, much to the definite consternation of our more subdued Canadians counterparts. About 50 of us still keep in touch via the Internet, though I and one unnamed person are likely the only conservatives in the group.
Whoever decided our first-year roommates had a wonderful sense of humor. My Elmsley Hall confrere that year was the total opposite of my early to bed, early to rise tradition. He was a nighthawk who would throw his brass alarm clock across the room when it had the effrontery to sound off too early for his liking. He happened to be the Editor of The Mike, so there were positives, as I was a good proofreader and go-fer who would take the paper to the printer. Other than asking my wife to marry me, the best decision I ever made was to say no when he asked if I wanted to smoke some dope.
Beyond the Crowleys, other friendships forged then have been a continuing source of strength and solidarity. At the risk of omitting some, John Ryan, my roommate in fourth year, has been a close, close friend who has been there both throughout our years in Uncle Sam’s forces and to this day. Leo Boyle, who disappointingly decided that Toronto’s gray skies were too much for him and left early to return to sunny Denver, used the talents he honed in the Senate Club and in persuading fellow class members that there was a glacier 100 miles north of Toronto to become a lobbyist in the Colorado State Legislature. Sister Donna Markham OP, Ph.D. is another of our group who left us far too soon to join the Adrian Dominicans and ultimately became the first woman President of Catholic Charities USA.
In addition, the Basilian staff at St. Mike’s blessed us mightily during our time there and beyond. Names that come to mind are the aforementioned Fr. Bob Madden, who officiated at quite a few weddings of our class; Fr. H.B. Gardiner, who not only hired me as a librarian at the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies but also married my wife and me; Fr. John M. Kelly, our President at the time; Fr. Owen Lee, a renowned scholar and commentator on operas; Fr. Charlie Leland, an always approachable English teacher; and Fr. Don Finlay, who did his best imitation of Sergeant Schultz of Hogan’s Heroes when he “saw nothing” when John Ryan and I were sneaking two young ladies up to More 30 for an afternoon fondue party.
Mustn’t forget the class reunions since we graduated. As mentioned earlier, if it weren’t for St. Mike’s, I wouldn’t live in Toronto. Most of my Western year friends graduated in 1968, but there were those of us who stayed on an extra year taking the Honours program or making up for a lost year. Much to the consternation of my beautiful wife, Anne, who is not a graduate of St. Mike’s, that means I attend two reunions every five years. In 1978, at the urging of John Ryan’s sister, I came up for that year’s 10th reunion and met the lady I thought I was going to marry. She was a teacher and, with that in mind, I decided to move to Toronto rather than make her go to the States where educators made much less money. Must admit that it was much more romantic when I’d fly in from Chicago to see her than when I was around all the time. She decided to take up curling, which I find a dumb sport, as I do enough sweeping already. Anyway, one day, she sat me down to let me know that she had met someone else at that sport. It all worked out in the end; because, prior to that, she had pointed me in the direction of a prayer group where I met my wife-to-be, a former student of hers, so all is well after 38 years of wedded bliss.
God does work in strange and mysterious ways!
Read other InsightOut posts.