Anniversary Celebrations

Fr Peter Woodruff50th Anniversary of Ordination

Fr Peter Woodruff was ordained priest at St Mary’s, Star of the Sea Church, Burnie, Tasmania, by Bishop Guildford Young, on July 14 1967.

Fr Peter was born in East Malvern, Victoria, the eldest of a family of four boys and one girl, but grew up mostly in Burnie, Tasmania, where his father was a teacher and headmaster. After completing his secondary education at St Virgil’s in Hobart, he moved back to the mainland for his seminary training, firstly at Sassafras, Victoria, and then at St Columbans, North Turramurra, NSW.

After ordination Fr Peter was appointed to Peru and following language studies served in parish ministry in the squatter areas of Lima until 1977 when he was appointed to mission education and vocations work in Australia for three years. After some study in Berkeley, California, he returned to parish work in Peru until 2001 when he came back to Australia and further study at Latrobe University in Melbourne where he eventually received a PhD for a thesis on rural life and culture in the Andes.

A final re-appointment to Peru in 2005 continued until 2009 when he returned to Australia and began a new career as a reporter of stories about mission and missionaries for The Far East magazine. Many of these stories were compiled into a book titled ‘Columbans on Mission’.

Fr Peter continues to use his writing skills as editor of both the Australian Journal of Mission Studies and ‘Columban Intercom’, an in-house Columban newsletter. We congratulate him on reaching this significant milestone of 50 years in the service of mission.

Fr Kevin O'Neill25th Anniversary of Ordination

Fr Kevin O’Neill, the current Superior General of the Society of St Columban, was ordained by Bishop Peter Connors at Holy Spirit Church, Manifold Heights, Geelong, on July 10, 1992.

Fr Kevin is fourth in a family of six. Fr Peter is his twin brother and also a Columban priest. Their parents, John and Ruth, reside in Geelong, Victoria.

Fr Kevin studied chemical engineering at the RMIT in Melbourne before he decided to join his brother at the Columban seminary in North Turramurra, NSW, in 1984. In 1988 he went to Taiwan for his Overseas Training Programme involving study of the Mandarin language and pastoral work with mentally ill patients.

Returning to Australia in 1990 he continued his seminary training until his ordination after which he was re-appointed to Taiwan. After further language study he engaged in prison ministry and in 1994 was made Coordinator of the Mission Unit while continuing to work with prisoners, youth, the mentally ill and HIV patients.

In 2000 Fr Kevin attended the Columban General Assembly in Sydney where he was elected to the General Council based in Ireland. After six years on the Council he was re-appointed to Taiwan and three years later to mainland China where he was made Coordinator of the China Mission Unit in 2010. As Coordinator he attended another Columban General Assembly in 2012 in Los Angeles where he was elected Superior General of the Society. His base as Superior General is Hong Kong.

We congratulate Kevin on achieving 25 years of Columban missionary priesthood in the Lord’s service.

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