Alvaro Ribiero, S.J. RIP

[blueeagle]

Very sad to read of the death of Fr. Ribiero. I knew that he was having some health issues, but this was totally unexpected.

I last saw him this past fall. He was accompanying a fellow Jesuit to mass at our cozy, neighborhood parish. I introduced him to my wife and two small children. He seemed very much like the affable, ebullient priest I came to know during my undergraduate years. He informed me that he was living in the Jesuit retirement home at the campus of Loyola College. We spoke briefly about post-teaching life and of his health issues. Though I was quite positive he could not place me exactly, he acted like we were old pals catching up.

In fact, I never took any of his classes. I knew him in the same way I knew other Jesuits like Jack Kelly and Bernie Knoth. I saw them around campus. They would invite students to the Jes Res for a meal or to the Tombs for a drink. They were part of the fabric of campus life.

I was planning on looking him up this spring to invite him for brunch with my family. Too late now.

You will be in my prayers, Father.

[rosslynhoya]

Thank you for sharing, Blue. "Affable" is such an apt description of the Fr. Ribiero I remember. RIP.

[CTHoya08]

Sad news. His Samuel Johnson class was one of my favorites.

[hoya95]

Very sorry to hear that. Fantastic guy, and I can still remember huge parts of his Shakespeare class. One of the best professors I ever had.

[dcahoya]

What a wonderful man. I took THREE of his classes and he wrote me a wonderful recommendation for law school. I like to think that I never split an infinitive after his freshman year writing class. Such an infectious enthusiasm that will be hard to replace.