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Published November 25, 2008, 12:00 AM

Father Peter Szleszinski


Father Peter Szleszinski was a member of the football team at St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee in the 1950s. Szleszinski is the rugged looking guy with the black hair in the back row, third from right. State Rep. Kitty Rhoades said Szleszinski turned down a football scholarship to the University of Michigan in order to enter the priesthood.

  • Father Peter Szleszinski was a member of the football team at St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee in the 1950s. Szleszinski is the rugged looking guy with the black hair in the back row, third from right. State Rep. Kitty Rhoades said Szleszinski turned down a football scholarship to the University of Michigan in order to enter the priesthood.
  • In the late 1960s, Father Szleszinski served several parishes in northern Wisconsin.
  • This 1981 photo was taken during Szleszinski’s 25th anniversary as a priest. The photo was taken while he was serving at St. Francis Xavier in Merrill.
  • Cammy Westerdahl’s children began a practice that continues to this day. The Westerdahl family has been close to Szleszinski, and their children have called Father Peter “grandpa.” During collection at the church, children are invited to bring money to the front of the church. The Westerdahl girls, Hannah, left, and Kailey, right, would bring their money to the front of the church, then hug Szleszinski, calling him “Grandpa.” Over the years, other children began hugging the priest, and the tradition was born.
  • Father Peter Szleszinski, pastor at <br /><br />St. Patrick’s Catholic Church for 19 years, died Nov. 18. This photo was taken in 2005, the year he retired. During his career, he served seven parishes in northern Wisconsin. Photo by Doug Stohlberg