Australian Salesian Bulletin

There are defining moments in life when a new experience and a word of encouragement opens up new vistas and sets our feet upon paths which lead to successful commitments never thought possible.  In 1942 a great and well known Salesian priest lay dying in the then Sacred Heart Hospital Moreland, Victoria, and from his death bed he penned a letter to a student of his as follows:

“One of my regrets is that I will not be able to teach you now. You have been a very good pupil for me. I am sure you will continue to study with the same interest with your new teachers.  I must compliment you on the great work you are doing for the scouts and the help you are giving to them. Great events are shaping up for you now.”

The priest was Father Michael Maiocco and his student the recently deceased Father James Carroll. Great events did indeed shape up for Jim Carroll. The following January he entered the Salesian novitiate and, on its completion one year later, he set out on a path which would lead to a lifetime of priestly apostolate for the young; and indeed the path would be long, for Fr Jim was a Salesian for 65 years and a Priest for 55 years. The defining experience, in the words of Fr Jim himself, was when in 1940 he joined the Don Bosco Scout group in Gardenvale. The Scoutmaster’s family had strong connections with the Salesians at Sunbury, while the Assistant Scoutmaster, John Henry Neale, joined the Salesians soon after Jim joined the troop.

In 1941, Jim then doing Leaving Honours at St Kevins Toorak, often visited Rupertswood on Scout camps and came to know and help the then Brother Terry Jennings, who was starting to form a scout troop there. All that Jim experienced during these visits impressed him greatly; the kindness of the Salesians, their dedication to their boys and, above all, the hardworking Salesian Brothers.

In Jim’s words, “The experience led me to change my mind from being an engineer to joining the Salesian Society.” That long Salesian life came to an end in the afternoon of Saturday, 15 May 2010. Fr Jim was admitted to hospital a few days before suffering from pneumonia. He hardly regained consciousness and was anointed during the week and again on the morning he died. His passing was not protracted. Through it he was accompanied by Father John Prest and Brother Michael Harris, both of whom had, over the last two years with loving attention, been his unfailing comfort and support. Announcing his death to the confreres of the province, the Provincial declared “A truly remarkable figure from our Province and its history is now with the Lord.” 

Fr Jim’s funeral Mass was held at the Salesian College Chapel at Rupertswood at 11:00 am on 20^th May.  Family members and many friends joined with his Salesian confreres from the various Salesian communities.  Over 40 priests concelebrated the Mass with the provincial Fr Frank Moloney, the main celebrant.

Fr Jim’s only surviving sister, Mrs Joan Deany, was accompanied by her son Simon and daughter Jane, together with other nieces and nephews who attended.

In his homily, Fr Frank Moloney detailed the main events in the life of Father Jim Carroll.

“Looking back across Jim’s Salesian life, it is divided into four distinct periods, and he has led a singular life and made a remarkable contribution at every stage. His early years as a Salesian belong to a long, even though interrupted, ‘Rupertswood’ stage.  In 1950 he set off for Turin. He pursued his theological studies, and was awarded a Licence, which is equivalent to our Masters degree, in Sacred Theology in 1954, and was ordained a Priest in Turin, with his Mother and one of his Sisters present, on July 7, 1954. However, instead of coming home, he was asked to remain in Turin to pursue a further Masters degree – a Licentiate in Canon Law.  Jim always joked about his theological and legal background, especially in the years when he was running a farm or a school at “Rupertswood.” In 1957 Jim returned to resume his Sunbury experience, and he was to remain there until he was appointed to Oakleigh in 1973. In those 17 years Jim was the Principal of the School, or Prefect of Studies, as we called it then, the Bursar, then concurrently the Bursar and the Farm Manager, succeeding Fr Terry Jennings. He became something of a specialist in dual roles. Indeed, in the years 1967 till 1972 he was simultaneously the Bursar and Farm Manager at ‘Rupertswood’ and the Rector of the house of formation and the Provincial House at Oakleigh!

Then came the Oakleigh years.  To my mind, this period of Jim’s life was the time when he really ‘came of age,’ and made an unforgettable contribution to the Province. In the first place, he took to a total change of scene with incredible ease. He moved from the frantic world of ‘Rupertswood’ to the house of formation and the Provincial office with great peace, and brought his talents to bear immediately. He was the Economer for all those years, and saw the Province through difficult times. Under three Provincials, Fr Wally Cornell, Fr Terry Jennings and Fr Frank Bertagnolli, he worked hard to establish a well-balanced administration, to bring our systems into a modern world ... eventually, although not without some hesitations, into their computerization.

And finally there is Ferntree Gully. I think they were Jim’s happiest years. He would say that all of his 60 years were happy, but he delighted in his life at Ferntree Gully. He came to the College as the Business Manager in 1994, in a time of financial difficulty.

It was at St Joseph’s that Jim was able to return to the reason why he came to the Salesians in 1942: to be with people involved in education, and especially young people. He was with them until he had to leave St Joseph’s because of his failing health. Even then, till the last weeks of his life, he was back at the College for his Friday mornings with the ladies in the office!  He loved everyone, and especially the boys of St Joseph’s. His Masses were a highlight for them. As always he was straight-forward in anything he had to say, and he spoke from his heart to theirs. Don Bosco has many faces. Jim Carroll’s presence in the College Community at Ferntree Gully was a unique face of Don Bosco.  Indeed, it will never be repeated in its uniqueness.”

After Communion, Fr Jim’s niece and nephews, Jane, Paul and Simon, spoke on how wonderful an Uncle Fr Jim was for them and their families.

The final commendation was given by Fr John Prest, Fr Jim’s last Rector, and, immediately after, the altar servers and priests led the procession down to the beautifully maintained cemetery in the College grounds. The students and staff of Salesian College Sunbury and St Joseph’s Ferntree Gully formed a respectful guard of honour from the chapel all the way to the cemetery. Fr Jim often commented on how impressive it was to see our students form a guard of honour with such respectful demeanour for our Salesian funerals.

Eulogies and sympathetic condolences for Fr Jim flowed from many people. Among them the following.

The Principal of St Joseph’s, Mr Vin Feeney, wrote: “In times of difficulty you want to know that you have dependable people around you. For St Joseph’s College Fr Jim Carroll was such a man. In the 1990’s the College had a time of financial difficulty; money was far too scarce. Enter Fr Jim who came as Business Manager in 1994. He came with plenty of experience after more than 20 years attending to the finances of the whole Salesian Congregation in Australia. He came with energy, drive and an indefatigable spirit. As a priest he was an apostolic presence amongst the boys and devoted himself to passing on his wisdom and gentle regard for young people through his purposeful homilies.”

Mr Joe Konynenburg, Executive Officer Catholic Education Business Administrators, in a letter to members wrote:

“It is with great regret that I announce the death of our colleague Fr Jim Carroll."

Jim was truly a ‘Salesian of Don Bosco’. A practical and inquisitive man, he was not daunted by the advent of the computer and prided himself on his Lotus 123 and later Excel skills. In 1994 (at the age of 69) he became Bursar at St Joseph’s College in Ferntree Gully, steering the College through a difficult financial period. He continued to play an active role in the life of the College until illness prevented him from doing so.  He was a practical man, who took an active role in the school maintenance team, and could often be found in the school holidays in the woodwork room preparing a variety of school improvement projects.”

And so after 65 years as a Salesian and 55 years a Priest, during which he was a teacher, a principal, a college bursar, Rector of a community, Vice Provincial and Provincial Bursar for 28 years, the prophetic words of Fr Michael Maiocco about his student came to complete fulfilment as Jim passed over into eternal life: “Great events are shaping up for you now.”