A Refuge for Priests Stricken by Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s disease has robbed Father Edmond Smyth of his ability to speak and to recognize family and friends. But when Smyth helps celebrate Mass, he easily remembers the rituals and blessings he performed as a priest for more than 50 years.

“He doesn’t know where he is or who he is, but he never misses a word of Mass,” said Karmen Lee, director of the Huger Mercy Living Center here, where Smyth lives with three other Catholic priests who also have Alzheimer’s.

“You wouldn’t know if you were sitting there [that] he had Alzheimer’s,” Lee said.

Smyth, 78, and his companions live in the House of Michael, a cottage at the Huger center that is designated specifically for priests with Alzheimer’s. The cottage is named for Father Michael Weishaar, a Roman Catholic priest who died of the disease early this year.

Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, is a progressive, degenerative illness that changes the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking and behavior. It cannot be cured or prevented.

One in 10 people over age 65 and nearly half of those over 85 have the disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Assn.

The House of Michael is one of four cottages for Alzheimer’s patients on a 5 1/2-acre parcel of land at the Huger center. Each cottage has a wood-burning stove, a kitchenette, a living room, specially equipped bathrooms and bedrooms. The center also provides meals, recreational activities and nursing care for about $2,500 a month.

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Mass is usually celebrated two to five times a week in the chapel. Smyth often helps the visiting priests who officiate at Mass, which is open to the center’s 31 residents.

Lee said the facility is the only one of its kind that offers a housing area specifically for priests afflicted with the disease.

“It’s so rewarding every time I see them,” Lee said. “That’s my gift.”

The cottage was financed by a special grant from the Frances Moynihan Huger Foundation, which also provided a trust fund to supplement expenses for residents who are unable to afford the full cost.

Smyth lives with three other priests: Father Robert Schneider, 66, Father Theophane Robertson, 89, and Father Robert J. Donohoe, 84.

Schneider once headed the Catholic school system in Milwaukee. When in the chapel, he often belts out a favorite Gregorian chant like a seasoned opera singer.

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Smyth is the former dean of arts and sciences at the University of San Francisco and a former pastor in Phoenix.

Robertson, a former priest in Santa Barbara, spends most of his time quietly reading his Bible.

Donohoe, one of the newest residents, is the founder of St. Agnes Catholic Church in Phoenix. He enjoys music and playing the organ.

“We just want them to know they are loved,” Lee said.