FATHER LECHTENBERG RETIRES AFTER 14 YEARS AT ST. PATRICK'S

By Tanya O’Connor
For 49 years, Father Ed Lechtenberg has run his fingertips over scores of infants, blessing them into the Church. He has also confirmed hundreds of teen-agers, celebrated the joy of the marriage mass and eased suffering when loved ones inevitably pass on.
“I’ve been a priest for 49 years and I wouldn’t have changed a thing,” says Fr. Ed. And after 14 years of service to St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Waukon, the affiliate parish of St. Mary’s, Lycurgus, and the oratory of St. John the Baptist, West Ridge, Fr. Ed has chosen to retire.
He may slow down, down to about the speed of the Mississippi backwaters he’s looking forward to fishing in. He will not, however, cease to be of service to those in need. Fr. Ed plans to assist area priests during weekend mass, and, in general, just lend a willing ear toward those seeking someone to listen. “I love people,” he says. “I guess the motto of my priesthood would be ‘Lord, that I might serve and serve and serve.’ ”
Forty-nine is a lengthy portion of years. But it’s not a lifetime. Once Fr. Ed was a student at the Immaculate Conception Grade School in Lansing. In 1944, he was an Immaculate Conception High School graduate. During the summer following his senior year, he worked for the Iowa State Conservation Commission, today’s DNR.
Fr. Ed recalls he’d always felt attracted to the priesthood, yet remained uncertain of future plans. With WWll in progress, it was time to make a decision. He went so far as to complete ensign testing for the Navy. Meanwhile, he began classes at Loras College in Dubuque. It was at this point, says Fr. Ed, that he chose a priest’s vocation. “I went on,” he recalls, “and never looked back.”
Upon graduating from Loras in 1947, he completed seminary studies at Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis. Fr. Ed was ordained on May 3, 1951, at Christ the King Chapel, Loras College, Dubuque.
The early years of his priesthood were not without hardship, recalls Fr. Ed. He cites working from early morning to late evening, day in and out. He occupied a number of positions, often simultaneously, including that of grade school teacher, religious training instructor, and football, basketball and baseball coach. He mentions an old friend, Chuck Lawler, reminding him to stop any complaining, good-naturedly prodding him that “this is what you signed up for.”
His faith, says Fr. Ed, has grown tremendously over the years. “When I was first ordained,” he says, “I was full of book knowledge. Everything was about duties, obligations.” His learning over the years, he adds, has centered more around accepting his calling and spirituality, not so much with only his intellect, but as an embodiment of his essential self.
Fr. Ed served several Iowa parishes in the years between 1951 and 1974, when he was assigned to St. Benedict’s Catholic Church in nearby Decorah. Fr. Ed remained a priest at St. Ben’s until 1986. At this point, his next expected assignment would place him in Bellevue. With the departure of St. Patrick's Fr. Manternach, however, Fr. Ed was assigned to the St. Pat’s parish. An assignment, he recalls, which immediately pleased him, as he was allowed to remain in Northeast Iowa.
At St. Pat’s, Fr. Ed was soon busy, and nearly each day throughout his 14-year stay has been full. A great deal of assistance has been gained over the years from the labor of Sister Margaret Kramer, director of religious education and pastoral minister.
On any “average” day, Fr. Ed may speak with couples planning to marry, or counsel married folks experiencing difficulty. He might carry out mass for the elderly at Makee Manor, Northgate or the Good Samaritan Center. Parishioners will telephone, requesting their infants be baptized, or announcing a loved one has passed on.
Fr. Ed tries, as best as one person is able, to be there for all the families needing him. In cases of tragedy, he remarks that the reality of the situation cannot be changed, and often the comfort of a supporting presence is aid enough. It is not God that kills those we love, he reminds us, simply the inevitability of death.
Fr. Ed has sought, in his years at St. Pat’s, to foster a good ecumenical relationship throughout his parish. A person of faith, he points out, must continually reach out to the entire community. “Sometimes,” he says, “we get stuck and forget that we got ordained for all the people of God. We should see the beauty in each person and not dehumanize them in their need.”
Today’s parish, comments Fr. Ed, struggles with today's issues. Parishioners come from a variety of backgrounds. On occasion, couples of differing faiths choose to marry. In such a case, Fr. Ed urges both parties to respect the faith of the other person. “Whatever your faith,” he says, “be faithful to that faith; practice your faith; and aim at holiness in your life.”
The spiritual life of the St. Pat’s and affiliate parishes has remained Fr. Ed’s largest concern, and he thanks his congregation, grateful that he, too, “has grown to a better relationship with Christ through this parish.”
“I’ll always be a priest,” says Fr. Ed. And while it’s true that priests don’t really retire, they often, at some point, begin to do more of what others do. Fr. Ed plans to travel a bit over the coming year, visiting friends in various corners of the U.S. In August, he will attend the wedding of a relative in Washington State.
This October, he will travel to Rome, and next year, plans to accompany the Luren Singers to Norway. The recent trips will add to an already impressive travel log, as Fr. Ed has already visited Europe, Mexico, Africa and China.
“I’ve been to most of the places in the world I’d like to go,” Fr. Ed says. Right now he’s feeling like there’s no place like home, and plans to move back into the Lansing house he was raised in.
Back in Waukon, Fr. Allen Schmitt will assume duties at St. Pat’s. Beginning this July, St. Mary’s, Hanover, and St. Mary’s, Dorchester, will fall under Fr. Schmitt’s care. St. Mary’s, Lycurgus, will receive assistance from Lansing.
And when Fr. Schmitt, another area priest or welcome parishoners pass by Lansing, they’ll find Fr. Ed. He’ll be in the house at 321 Diagonal Street. It’s the one with the sign on the door. The one that reads, “Everyone is always welcome.”