from the St. Mary's Magazine - Priests and Brothers of St. Mary's Mission by Mary E. Gentges, SMC ' 86:
"This good priest was born at Ninove in East Flanders, Belgium, December 19, 1811, entered the Society of Jesus October 19, 1843, and was brought by circumstances to die at St. Mary's on the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, July 16, 1864, and to be laid to rest here. Fr. De Coen was one of the Jesuit fathers who labored among the Potawatomi at Sugar Creek. The fathers reached out to numerous tribes on neighboring preserves and re-established contact with descendants of Indians who had first been evangelized by Jesuits in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These included the Ottawa, Peoria, Wea, Miami, Chippewa, Kaskaskia, and others who have given their names to the geographical features of Kansas. Many of these were served by Fr. De Coen who traveled regularly to offer Mass for them, although unfortunately, the good father was never able to master the Indian languages and had to use an interpreter. The Catholic history of Kansas began with the mission travels of these priests.The Indians esteemed the Fathers highly; in broken English one of them told a traveler, "When Indian sick, priest lie on the floor and give him bed; if he have no covering, he cover him; do anything for Indian." In 1846, Fr. De Coen was working among the Osage, travelling to their reserve to see the progress of a school being built, and to baptize their infants. That year he was transferred from Sugar Creek. In 1849, he was one of the three Missouri Jesuits whose names were proposed to the Holy Father to head the new vicariate of the Indian territory east of the Rockies. This shows in what high esteem he was held. When Fr. Miége was chosen, he requested that Fr. De Coen be re-assigned to the prairies to help him, but the need for teachers in the Colleges was so great that Fr. De Coen was detained to work in St. Aloysius College in Louisville. By 1855, he was working with Fr. De Smet at St. Gall's in Milwaukee, a neglected and out-of-repair parish in an unhealthy marshy district. Sometimes the priests were called to minister to dying Catholics over 100 miles out in the country. During Fr. De Coen's days at St. Gall's, a flourishing parish was built up, a new rectory and brick church constructed, and an Academy opened which was the forerunner of Marquette College. By 1861, Fr. De Coen had at last joined Bishop Miége in Leavenworth, but his health broke, and in 1864 he arrived in St. Mary's for a rest. On Saturday, the 16th of July he took a ride over the reservation, and then retired to recite his office in the parlor which was next to Fr. Diels' room. Br. De Vriendt brought him his breviary and the Father remarked, "What a happy day, the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!" Br. De Vriendt left him to his prayers, only recalling later his significant words. The next morning, Sunday, Fr. Gailland was just coming out of the chapel after saying the 6:30 a.m. Mass when he was accosted by an Indian woman, Mrs. Lasley, wife of a Canadian trader. "Father," she inquired, "is there a stranger, a priest, visiting at the Mission?" Fr. Gailland replied that there was, but why this unusual question? Mrs. Lasley explained that the night before, her little daughter Mary had awakened her parents by crying out in the night, "Look, Father and Mother, the American priest at St. Mary's Mission is going up to heaven!" Struck by her words, Fr. Gailland, Br. De Vriendt and others hurried to seek Fr. De Coen. They found him dead on the floor of the parlor where Br. De Vriendt had left him the evening before. Fr. Diels came in after his Mass and broke into tears, for he and Fr. De Coen had been great friends. Fr. Gailland went to the Lasley cabin about a quarter mile south of the mission on the road to the river (possibly near the present Lasley street) to examine carefully little Mary Lasley, at this time only three or four years of age. Without agitation she answered his questions concerning her apparent vision, and the Fathers believed that she was telling the truth. The child's words were Fr. Gailland's one consolation. The Potawatomi turned out in numbers for Fr. De Coen's funeral for they had loved him dearly at Sugar Creek. When Bishop Miége next visited St. Mary's his first request was to be shown the grave of the good Father. And little Mary Lasley herself died a holy death at the age of only six. They were the salvation of the priests, but there were never enough of them to do all the work. Fr. John Diels certainly appreciated them. A Belgian, he became fourth superior of St. Mary's in April, 1861. (Today he is remembered for having built the gazebo, also known as "Fr. Diels old Indian Shrine.") Father had been in service at Sugar Creek in his scholastic days and had certainly seen the brothers laboring year in and year out for the mission. Concerning the brothers at St. Mary's, he wrote in 1862 that they were carrying a heavy load, adding, "their great readiness for labor and prompt obedience have been no slight consolation to us." As there was no tailor, shoemaker, baker, butcher, and scarcely a blacksmith in a radius of 20 miles, the brothers had to discharge a variety of tasks. It was the time of the Civil War and help was hard to obtain. The brothers had to help with the farm, do the cooking, watch over the boys, give them lessons in manual labor, and teach them in school as well."
"This good priest was born at Ninove in East Flanders, Belgium, December 19, 1811, entered the Society of Jesus October 19, 1843, and was brought by circumstances to die at St. Mary's on the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, July 16, 1864, and to be laid to rest here. Fr. De Coen was one of the Jesuit fathers who labored among the Potawatomi at Sugar Creek. The fathers reached out to numerous tribes on neighboring preserves and re-established contact with descendants of Indians who had first been evangelized by Jesuits in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These included the Ottawa, Peoria, Wea, Miami, Chippewa, Kaskaskia, and others who have given their names to the geographical features of Kansas. Many of these were served by Fr. De Coen who traveled regularly to offer Mass for them, although unfortunately, the good father was never able to master the Indian languages and had to use an interpreter. The Catholic history of Kansas began with the mission travels of these priests.The Indians esteemed the Fathers highly; in broken English one of them told a traveler, "When Indian sick, priest lie on the floor and give him bed; if he have no covering, he cover him; do anything for Indian." In 1846, Fr. De Coen was working among the Osage, travelling to their reserve to see the progress of a school being built, and to baptize their infants. That year he was transferred from Sugar Creek. In 1849, he was one of the three Missouri Jesuits whose names were proposed to the Holy Father to head the new vicariate of the Indian territory east of the Rockies. This shows in what high esteem he was held. When Fr. Miége was chosen, he requested that Fr. De Coen be re-assigned to the prairies to help him, but the need for teachers in the Colleges was so great that Fr. De Coen was detained to work in St. Aloysius College in Louisville. By 1855, he was working with Fr. De Smet at St. Gall's in Milwaukee, a neglected and out-of-repair parish in an unhealthy marshy district. Sometimes the priests were called to minister to dying Catholics over 100 miles out in the country. During Fr. De Coen's days at St. Gall's, a flourishing parish was built up, a new rectory and brick church constructed, and an Academy opened which was the forerunner of Marquette College. By 1861, Fr. De Coen had at last joined Bishop Miége in Leavenworth, but his health broke, and in 1864 he arrived in St. Mary's for a rest. On Saturday, the 16th of July he took a ride over the reservation, and then retired to recite his office in the parlor which was next to Fr. Diels' room. Br. De Vriendt brought him his breviary and the Father remarked, "What a happy day, the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!" Br. De Vriendt left him to his prayers, only recalling later his significant words. The next morning, Sunday, Fr. Gailland was just coming out of the chapel after saying the 6:30 a.m. Mass when he was accosted by an Indian woman, Mrs. Lasley, wife of a Canadian trader. "Father," she inquired, "is there a stranger, a priest, visiting at the Mission?" Fr. Gailland replied that there was, but why this unusual question? Mrs. Lasley explained that the night before, her little daughter Mary had awakened her parents by crying out in the night, "Look, Father and Mother, the American priest at St. Mary's Mission is going up to heaven!" Struck by her words, Fr. Gailland, Br. De Vriendt and others hurried to seek Fr. De Coen. They found him dead on the floor of the parlor where Br. De Vriendt had left him the evening before. Fr. Diels came in after his Mass and broke into tears, for he and Fr. De Coen had been great friends. Fr. Gailland went to the Lasley cabin about a quarter mile south of the mission on the road to the river (possibly near the present Lasley street) to examine carefully little Mary Lasley, at this time only three or four years of age. Without agitation she answered his questions concerning her apparent vision, and the Fathers believed that she was telling the truth. The child's words were Fr. Gailland's one consolation. The Potawatomi turned out in numbers for Fr. De Coen's funeral for they had loved him dearly at Sugar Creek. When Bishop Miége next visited St. Mary's his first request was to be shown the grave of the good Father. And little Mary Lasley herself died a holy death at the age of only six. They were the salvation of the priests, but there were never enough of them to do all the work. Fr. John Diels certainly appreciated them. A Belgian, he became fourth superior of St. Mary's in April, 1861. (Today he is remembered for having built the gazebo, also known as "Fr. Diels old Indian Shrine.") Father had been in service at Sugar Creek in his scholastic days and had certainly seen the brothers laboring year in and year out for the mission. Concerning the brothers at St. Mary's, he wrote in 1862 that they were carrying a heavy load, adding, "their great readiness for labor and prompt obedience have been no slight consolation to us." As there was no tailor, shoemaker, baker, butcher, and scarcely a blacksmith in a radius of 20 miles, the brothers had to discharge a variety of tasks. It was the time of the Civil War and help was hard to obtain. The brothers had to help with the farm, do the cooking, watch over the boys, give them lessons in manual labor, and teach them in school as well."
from the St. Mary's Magazine - Priests and Brothers of St. Mary's Mission by Mary E. Gentges, SMC ' 86:
"This good priest was born at Ninove in East Flanders, Belgium, December 19, 1811, entered the Society of Jesus October 19, 1843, and was brought by circumstances to die at St. Mary's on the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, July 16, 1864, and to be laid to rest here. Fr. De Coen was one of the Jesuit fathers who labored among the Potawatomi at Sugar Creek. The fathers reached out to numerous tribes on neighboring preserves and re-established contact with descendants of Indians who had first been evangelized by Jesuits in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These included the Ottawa, Peoria, Wea, Miami, Chippewa, Kaskaskia, and others who have given their names to the geographical features of Kansas. Many of these were served by Fr. De Coen who traveled regularly to offer Mass for them, although unfortunately, the good father was never able to master the Indian languages and had to use an interpreter. The Catholic history of Kansas began with the mission travels of these priests.The Indians esteemed the Fathers highly; in broken English one of them told a traveler, "When Indian sick, priest lie on the floor and give him bed; if he have no covering, he cover him; do anything for Indian." In 1846, Fr. De Coen was working among the Osage, travelling to their reserve to see the progress of a school being built, and to baptize their infants. That year he was transferred from Sugar Creek. In 1849, he was one of the three Missouri Jesuits whose names were proposed to the Holy Father to head the new vicariate of the Indian territory east of the Rockies. This shows in what high esteem he was held. When Fr. Miége was chosen, he requested that Fr. De Coen be re-assigned to the prairies to help him, but the need for teachers in the Colleges was so great that Fr. De Coen was detained to work in St. Aloysius College in Louisville. By 1855, he was working with Fr. De Smet at St. Gall's in Milwaukee, a neglected and out-of-repair parish in an unhealthy marshy district. Sometimes the priests were called to minister to dying Catholics over 100 miles out in the country. During Fr. De Coen's days at St. Gall's, a flourishing parish was built up, a new rectory and brick church constructed, and an Academy opened which was the forerunner of Marquette College. By 1861, Fr. De Coen had at last joined Bishop Miége in Leavenworth, but his health broke, and in 1864 he arrived in St. Mary's for a rest. On Saturday, the 16th of July he took a ride over the reservation, and then retired to recite his office in the parlor which was next to Fr. Diels' room. Br. De Vriendt brought him his breviary and the Father remarked, "What a happy day, the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!" Br. De Vriendt left him to his prayers, only recalling later his significant words. The next morning, Sunday, Fr. Gailland was just coming out of the chapel after saying the 6:30 a.m. Mass when he was accosted by an Indian woman, Mrs. Lasley, wife of a Canadian trader. "Father," she inquired, "is there a stranger, a priest, visiting at the Mission?" Fr. Gailland replied that there was, but why this unusual question? Mrs. Lasley explained that the night before, her little daughter Mary had awakened her parents by crying out in the night, "Look, Father and Mother, the American priest at St. Mary's Mission is going up to heaven!" Struck by her words, Fr. Gailland, Br. De Vriendt and others hurried to seek Fr. De Coen. They found him dead on the floor of the parlor where Br. De Vriendt had left him the evening before. Fr. Diels came in after his Mass and broke into tears, for he and Fr. De Coen had been great friends. Fr. Gailland went to the Lasley cabin about a quarter mile south of the mission on the road to the river (possibly near the present Lasley street) to examine carefully little Mary Lasley, at this time only three or four years of age. Without agitation she answered his questions concerning her apparent vision, and the Fathers believed that she was telling the truth. The child's words were Fr. Gailland's one consolation. The Potawatomi turned out in numbers for Fr. De Coen's funeral for they had loved him dearly at Sugar Creek. When Bishop Miége next visited St. Mary's his first request was to be shown the grave of the good Father. And little Mary Lasley herself died a holy death at the age of only six. They were the salvation of the priests, but there were never enough of them to do all the work. Fr. John Diels certainly appreciated them. A Belgian, he became fourth superior of St. Mary's in April, 1861. (Today he is remembered for having built the gazebo, also known as "Fr. Diels old Indian Shrine.") Father had been in service at Sugar Creek in his scholastic days and had certainly seen the brothers laboring year in and year out for the mission. Concerning the brothers at St. Mary's, he wrote in 1862 that they were carrying a heavy load, adding, "their great readiness for labor and prompt obedience have been no slight consolation to us." As there was no tailor, shoemaker, baker, butcher, and scarcely a blacksmith in a radius of 20 miles, the brothers had to discharge a variety of tasks. It was the time of the Civil War and help was hard to obtain. The brothers had to help with the farm, do the cooking, watch over the boys, give them lessons in manual labor, and teach them in school as well."
"This good priest was born at Ninove in East Flanders, Belgium, December 19, 1811, entered the Society of Jesus October 19, 1843, and was brought by circumstances to die at St. Mary's on the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, July 16, 1864, and to be laid to rest here. Fr. De Coen was one of the Jesuit fathers who labored among the Potawatomi at Sugar Creek. The fathers reached out to numerous tribes on neighboring preserves and re-established contact with descendants of Indians who had first been evangelized by Jesuits in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These included the Ottawa, Peoria, Wea, Miami, Chippewa, Kaskaskia, and others who have given their names to the geographical features of Kansas. Many of these were served by Fr. De Coen who traveled regularly to offer Mass for them, although unfortunately, the good father was never able to master the Indian languages and had to use an interpreter. The Catholic history of Kansas began with the mission travels of these priests.The Indians esteemed the Fathers highly; in broken English one of them told a traveler, "When Indian sick, priest lie on the floor and give him bed; if he have no covering, he cover him; do anything for Indian." In 1846, Fr. De Coen was working among the Osage, travelling to their reserve to see the progress of a school being built, and to baptize their infants. That year he was transferred from Sugar Creek. In 1849, he was one of the three Missouri Jesuits whose names were proposed to the Holy Father to head the new vicariate of the Indian territory east of the Rockies. This shows in what high esteem he was held. When Fr. Miége was chosen, he requested that Fr. De Coen be re-assigned to the prairies to help him, but the need for teachers in the Colleges was so great that Fr. De Coen was detained to work in St. Aloysius College in Louisville. By 1855, he was working with Fr. De Smet at St. Gall's in Milwaukee, a neglected and out-of-repair parish in an unhealthy marshy district. Sometimes the priests were called to minister to dying Catholics over 100 miles out in the country. During Fr. De Coen's days at St. Gall's, a flourishing parish was built up, a new rectory and brick church constructed, and an Academy opened which was the forerunner of Marquette College. By 1861, Fr. De Coen had at last joined Bishop Miége in Leavenworth, but his health broke, and in 1864 he arrived in St. Mary's for a rest. On Saturday, the 16th of July he took a ride over the reservation, and then retired to recite his office in the parlor which was next to Fr. Diels' room. Br. De Vriendt brought him his breviary and the Father remarked, "What a happy day, the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!" Br. De Vriendt left him to his prayers, only recalling later his significant words. The next morning, Sunday, Fr. Gailland was just coming out of the chapel after saying the 6:30 a.m. Mass when he was accosted by an Indian woman, Mrs. Lasley, wife of a Canadian trader. "Father," she inquired, "is there a stranger, a priest, visiting at the Mission?" Fr. Gailland replied that there was, but why this unusual question? Mrs. Lasley explained that the night before, her little daughter Mary had awakened her parents by crying out in the night, "Look, Father and Mother, the American priest at St. Mary's Mission is going up to heaven!" Struck by her words, Fr. Gailland, Br. De Vriendt and others hurried to seek Fr. De Coen. They found him dead on the floor of the parlor where Br. De Vriendt had left him the evening before. Fr. Diels came in after his Mass and broke into tears, for he and Fr. De Coen had been great friends. Fr. Gailland went to the Lasley cabin about a quarter mile south of the mission on the road to the river (possibly near the present Lasley street) to examine carefully little Mary Lasley, at this time only three or four years of age. Without agitation she answered his questions concerning her apparent vision, and the Fathers believed that she was telling the truth. The child's words were Fr. Gailland's one consolation. The Potawatomi turned out in numbers for Fr. De Coen's funeral for they had loved him dearly at Sugar Creek. When Bishop Miége next visited St. Mary's his first request was to be shown the grave of the good Father. And little Mary Lasley herself died a holy death at the age of only six. They were the salvation of the priests, but there were never enough of them to do all the work. Fr. John Diels certainly appreciated them. A Belgian, he became fourth superior of St. Mary's in April, 1861. (Today he is remembered for having built the gazebo, also known as "Fr. Diels old Indian Shrine.") Father had been in service at Sugar Creek in his scholastic days and had certainly seen the brothers laboring year in and year out for the mission. Concerning the brothers at St. Mary's, he wrote in 1862 that they were carrying a heavy load, adding, "their great readiness for labor and prompt obedience have been no slight consolation to us." As there was no tailor, shoemaker, baker, butcher, and scarcely a blacksmith in a radius of 20 miles, the brothers had to discharge a variety of tasks. It was the time of the Civil War and help was hard to obtain. The brothers had to help with the farm, do the cooking, watch over the boys, give them lessons in manual labor, and teach them in school as well."
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