On September 18, 2007, our confrere and a founding member of our community, Father Thomas Roznowski, O.S.B. died after being involved in a car accident on Interstate 29 only a few miles from the abbey.

Father Thomas was born in DuQuoin, Illinois on May 9, 1925. He attended St. Placid’s Hall, the school for brotherhood candidates at St. Meinrad’s Archabbey, where he learned tailoring. In 1942, Father Thomas entered the novitiate, receiving the name Simeon at first profession a year later. He made final vows in 1946. In 1952, Brother Simeon was assigned to St. Meinrad’s South Dakota foundation. He was our tailor and also the baker, vestiarius, and house prefect. Simeon became Thomas once again when we were allowed to resume our baptismal names. In 1963 he assisted monks from Assumption Abbey in North Dakota at Colegio San Carlos in Bogota, Colombia. He did not remain there long because the altitude was affecting his health. The same situation existed when he arrived at our own foundation in Coban, Guatemala. Although Father Thomas did not remain in Latin America, he retained a basic use of the Spanish language. He was able to speak with the Hispanic people who are moving into this part of South Dakota.

Father Thomas worked on all of Blue Cloud’s missions in the Dakotas as a prefect in the board-ing schools and later as a pastor. From 1972 until 1975, he prepared for ordination at Pope John XXIII Seminary in Weston, Massachusetts. He served as a priest at several of the mission parishes and in 1986 was named superior of St. Ann’s Mission, Belcourt, North Dakota. In 1993 he became pastor of St. Lawrence’s Church, Milbank, South Dakota. He remained there until 1998 when he became Director of the Blue Cloud Retreat Center and Chairman of the Board of Directors for the American Indian Culture Center. At the time of death, he still held these responsibilities. Another care of his was visiting the elderly and shut-ins among our neighbors.  

Father Thomas was known for his charity among his confreres and the people he served outside the monastery. He was a joyous person whose presence was appreciated by all who knew him.

He lived simply and took hardly anything with him wherever he was assigned. He hoarded nothing—except every issue of The National Catholic Reporter which he kept in his room for almost a week.

For a number of years now, as we withdrew from the reservations and our community became

smaller and smaller, Father Thomas often remarked, “It’s all over.” Life on this earth is indeed

all over for him and it came so suddenly.  

We ask the members of our monastic congregation and all other Benedictines to remember Father Thomas in their prayers for the deceased. His funeral and burial were at Blue Cloud Abbey on September 25, 2007.

Abbot Thomas Hillenbrand, O.S.B. & the Monks of Blue Cloud Abbey, Marvin, South Dakota