In Loving Memory of Edward "Bud" McDermott

On Tuesday, October 10, 2000, Edward J. McDermott returned home to his creator. "Everyone knew him as Uncle Bud," says his sister, Rosemary Thompson. "His heart and soul was at St. Francis Seraph. It was his life. He even went so far as to move into the neighborhood to be nearby. His faith was everything to him. If anybody needed anything, he would do what he could to help. He was just there for people."

Like his dear friend, Fr. Germain Krizmanich, OFM, former Pastor of St. Francis Seraph Church, Bud was a longtime member of Cursillo, a Spanish-based movement that offers a weekend of study and prayer to lay people, religious and clergy. He was instrumental in bringing the Cursillo movement to non-Catholic congregations in the Cincinnati area. Fellow Cursillo member, Al Tallarigo, remembered Bud as a "very humble man . . . very generous. He had complete, absolute trust in the Lord."

It was through Cursillo that Bud met Cookie Vogelpohl. Shortly after, Cookie, with Fr. Germain’s blessing, founded the St. Francis Seraph Soup Kitchen in 1981 and asked Bud for help. Bud stepped right in, recruiting both donations and volunteers to support the soup kitchen. "It was right up his alley," says Ms. Vogelpohl. Loyal and committed, Bud remained actively involved at the soup kitchen until his death. Many who knew him can still hear Bud, as he both looked and pointed heavenward saying, "If you’re not doing it for Him, you’re doing it for all the wrong reasons." A generous man of deep faith, he will be missed.

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