The Junior is proud of his academic achievements and presents a ‘report card’ in the June 5^th letter. It is clear there is a need for a Jesuit Junior to be adaptable and available with the last minute change to be sent to Wickwemikong, and the slow revelation about the philosophy studies. In the letter from Wickwemikong he reveals his new endeavour, playing the guitar. In the post script he tells the good news of his mission to philosophy studies in Spokane, Washington.

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IGNATIUS COLLEGE

Guelph Ontario

June 5, 1965

Dear Mum and dad,

I thought I should write a short letter to let you know that I am still alive and kicking. The exams are over for this year and the results were very pleasant. I’ll list these marks only because they are rather good: Literature course- 84%, Latin course- 83, Philosophy course- 91%, Humanities- 78%, and Botany- 73%.

The exams may be over but I still have to finish a term paper. Since I missed almost a month of this term, there just wasn’t time to get caught up in all the work and to do two term papers. I was allowed to do one later on. That term paper is almost finished needing only another revision and typing job.

Tomorrow I am leaving for Wickwemikong, an Indian mission on an island in lake Huron. It should be a very interesting experience. I was originally supposed to go to Martyr’s shrine but last night a change was made and so off I go. I have heard that there is no electricity on the island etc. and that will remind me very much of the time when we didn’t have it at home, a way back in the fifties. Brother St. Amand is going with me. We will probably be doing a lot of teaching, (catechism, singing) and other work with the Indian children. I’ll drop you a line from the mission and tell you all about it.

A couple of the Juniors got a surprise this week. On Wednesday they found out that have to go to St. Louis in the States for philosophy and that they had to be there by next Friday. Another Junior, Joe Schner is going to New York (state) for philosophy. The rest of us have no idea as yet so . . .

The ordinations in Toronto on Saturday were wonderful. Our singing came off without a hitch, which is unusual. All in all it was a marvellous day. [in hand writing] I never got this letter finished!

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Holy Cross Mission, Manitoulin Island

Wikwemikong, Ontario

June 9/65

[hand written letter]

Dear mum + dad

Hope you got my post card. Everything is going fine here. I should have written this on my arrival because it takes two days for mail to get off this island. The people here on the reserve are marvellous but there is so much to accomplish yet. They have their particular traits and weaknesses as well as good qualities. Our work is mostly with the kids. We helped them in discussion groups at a school retreat the first two days we were here + that was a job. It ended up that we did practically all the talking, but as time went on it got better.

The other night we had a bit of a sing song with some Indian children + I learned an Indian song, or I should say we put a Kenyan song into Indian. (Did I ever tell you I’ll leaning to play the guitar! I picked it up in the past month + brought along Bro. Bonic’s guitar to the mission + it’s helping a lot with the kids. We want to get them singing so that we can get them singing in church.)

Besides that I’m picking up an odd Indian word or so. I’ve great ambitions. I want to teach them to sing the Magnificat in Indian + a few other hymns. We’re going to teach the boys the mass prayers + rest of the serving. (Some know fairly well but need more learning.) There are about 50 boys in the Altar boy’s club. There’s supposed to be a picnic for the boys sometime and a few other activities so we will have a lot of contact with the kids.

The place here is beautiful and the town small and scattered over the hillside. All the mission fathers are wonderful to us and don’t give us enough work to do. We have to work on our own initiative and find our own work to do. It makes it a little difficult but now we are feeling more at home there is not so much trouble in that.

I’d better close now.

Best of everything. Love + prayers to all

Your son,

Frank

P.S. I got word yesterday that I’m going to Spokane for philosophy so I’ll be passing through in late August. Plans can be made more detailed in about a month’s time.

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Photos courtesy of Frank Obrigewitsch, SJ.