Another Diamond for Columbans
Gary Walker
Fr Leo Baker was born on January 6, 1923 at Cobden in rural Gippsland, Victoria. He was the first in a family of 8, five boys and three girls. Their father, Jack, was a farmer from Pomborneit. His mother was the only daughter of Denis Thompson of Thompson’s Hotel, Cobden.
Leo began his primary education in 1930 at the Catholic primary school in Tatura, conducted by the Mercy Sisters. Later when the family moved, he went to State Schools in Tatura East and Lemnos, then to Cobden State School for his final year before leaving at 14 years of age and going to work.
Leo worked on several dairy farms of members of the Scanlan family. He was inspired by the good Christian lives of the Scanlan family and began to think about becoming a missionary priest. In 1939 he contacted the Columban Fathers in Essendon and they advised him to further his education at St Patrick’s College, Ballarat. After matriculating, he went to St Columbans for three years formation and then to Corpus Christi diocesan seminary in Werribee for four years of theology.
Leo was ordained by Archbishop Daniel Mannix on July 25, 1948 in St Patrick’s Cathedral. His appointment was to Korea but he helped out in Deepdene parish in Melbourne for six months. He arrived in Korea on April 1, 1950. The Korean War began on June 25, 1950 and Leo left Korea from Mokpo for Japan. Leo was then appointed permanently to Japan.
After a year of language study at the Columban house in Wakayama City, he was appointed to the Tokyo Archdiocese to start a new mission in Kamogawa, a coastal town about 100 miles from Tokyo.
Subsequent appointments were to Ryujin (1958-1960) Kumamoto City (1960-1962), Arao (1962-1964), Sakistu (1965), Tokyo as historian and regional correspondent (1966-1967), Shimasaki (1967-1968) and Choshi (1968-1976).
After a holiday in Australia in 1976 Leo served three years at St Columbans, Essendon as Bursar and House Superior after which he returned to Tokyo to serve as Columban regional correspondent. From early 1981 to 1986 he was Director of an English teaching centre in Kawasaki established by the Good Shepherd Movement with five or six young American teachers.
In 1986 Leo was again appointed to Australia. That year he helped with a mission appeal in the parishes of Ballarat diocese. In 1987, he helped to conduct a mission education and magazine appeal in the archdiocese of Adelaide.
From 1988 to 1998 he served as chaplain to Nazareth House, a Home for the Aged in North Turramurra, Sydney while living at St Columban’s College nearby. After celebrating his Golden Jubilee of ordination in 1998, Leo retired to St Columban’s, Essendon.
He continues to be active and busy at photography, making photo - greeting cards, gardening, letter writing, acting as Chaplain to aged retired Sisters and just being an active member of the Essendon Columban community.
With that community and visiting Columban priests, Leo will celebrate his Diamond Jubilee on July 25, 2008. Congratulations to Fr Leo Baker.
