Viet Seminary Transplants Its Roots in Rural Missouri

There were no Asians living here until the summer of 1975, when 175 Roman Catholic priests and brothers arrived, escapees from Vietnam and the Communists.

But this small Midwestern town (pop. 11,000) with roots as deep as the marble quarries for which it was once known, has found itself the site of the largest annual gathering of Vietnamese Americans. Some locals look forward to the festival. Others dread it.

“I think it’s a great thing that happens to the town, and they’re wonderful people,” says Charlie Rogers, 36, a lifelong resident. He happily provides lawn space, water and electricity to campers. They bring him Vietnamese food.

But next door, KEEP OUT signs are nailed to trees. The owners display a large American flag.

A few residents speak derisively of the seminary of the Congregation of the Mother Co-Redemptrix.

Says Carthage Police Chief Ed Ellefsen: “It’s not unusual for some local resident to get liquored up and want to express his feelings. They don’t know anything about the Vietnamese. They just know they don’t like them. There are some hard-core prejudices, which I have no tolerance for.”

When the priests and brothers came to Carthage, taking over a 20-acre seminary an American order had abandoned, they found themselves in a city that resembles a set for “The Music Man.” Today, 120 priests and brothers live there.

At first, the brothers paid token rent. In Vietnam, they had been an agrarian community, self-supporting. In Carthage, their plans for raising pigs were thwarted by red tape.

Although their order does not condone “begging,” their founder, Father Dominic Thu--imprisoned in Vietnam since 1984 with 20 other priests--gave permission for a direct mail solicitation. A few years ago, they were able to buy the seminary property for less than $1 million.