Part 3 of 5
by Bob Sullivan
After 7 a.m. Mass, the tables of breads, boiled eggs, fresh fruit, and energy bars lined the farmhouse lane which would lead us back to our shorter walk that day. It was supposed to be 14 miles, but due to recent rains, we had to walk 2 miles out of our way to take the fourth alternate route, making the day an 18-mile walk.
Trailers hauled our camping gear off to the evening’s camp site, as we met some new and old friends and noticed that some of the pilgrims were limping a little more than they were the previous day.
It was a warmer day, and sunscreen and shade were essential for everyone. However, the humidity was still unusually low, and the route continued to be flat. We all know that much of Kansas is flat, but I have learned to appreciate that now.
The volunteers continued to do a fantastic job of taking care of everyone, and for the first time, I noticed that the nurses were helping direct traffic and were walking as well. Later that night, I saw them helping each other treat their own blisters, much like Father Kapaun had likely needed support from others while he served as their chaplain.
By this time, Jimmy and I had made some new friends. While we pretty much walked the entire route with each other, we would chat with many others as we slowed down before we overtook them or as they slowed down then walked past us. It was on day two that we met Peggy.
Peggy had been on nearly every pilgrimage since it started but she didn’t seem to have a personal story about Father Kapaun. Later we learned that she did have a personal story. Her father, Patrick Schuler, was Father Kapaun’s driver and assistant during the Korean War. The most iconic picture of Father Kapaun shows Father Kapaun standing in his vestments in front of an Army Jeep. On the hood of the Jeep is an army blanket, a crucifix, Mass altar cards, and the missal. The young man kneeling in the photo was Private Patrick Schuler, Peggy’s father.
Because of the alternate route, the pilgrimage volunteers had to search for a farm willing to let them set up and serve us our lunch. They found an agreeable family in time for more than 275 pilgrims and volunteers to flood in and overrun their large and very shaded yard for an hour.
During lunch, a friend of mine who just happened to choose to go on the pilgrimage this year as well – though we didn’t know the other one was going – happened to sit down where the nurses soon set up their temporary clinic. After a little while he thought he might have them look at the soles of his feet due to an increasing level of discomfort he had experienced as the morning had worn on. He looked concerned and with one glance at his feet, I knew I would have limped into one of the volunteer vehicles miles earlier.
He asked me if they looked bad and I jokingly told him I had briefly turned away and wept. I didn’t, but I hoped a little humor would ease the pain a bit. The nurses had to inform him there was little they could do to relieve his pain or keep his feet from becoming even more blistered. They patched him up to the extent that was possible, and he hobbled the last nine miles.
After lunch, Nick Dellasega told the pilgrims about his miraculous survival from a sudden heart failure during a 5k run in Wichita when he was 26 years old. Near the end of the race, he collapsed face first, skidded to a stop and began to convulse. Several people rushed to his aid, some of whom were his relatives.
As his uncle, who happened to be a doctor, began CPR on Nick, his 14-year-old cousin Jonah dropped to his knees and prayed for Father Kapaun’s help.
Others began to pray that Father Kapaun would come to Nick’s aid as he was rushed to the hospital. Looking back at the incident, many people believe they saw the hand of God, and the hand of Father Kapaun, in the unlikely series of events which led to Nick’s recovery.
Nick walked the entire pilgrimage with us as he has done many times in the past. Earlier that day, I spent 15-20 minutes walking and talking with Nick, who was more interested in listening to me than talking about himself.
That night we had live musical entertainment from a couple of singer-songwriters as a family pulled up and fed us as many homemade loose-meat beef burgers and as much potato salad as we could eat. I can’t imagine how much food we all packed away that night. One of the musicians was Father Kapaun’s nephew, Ray Kapaun.
The evening breeze cooled us all down, and by 7:59 p.m., I was in my cot. I don’t remember 8 p.m. There was a very busy train track adjacent to our camp that night, but I only briefly heard one or two trains all night.
As we packed up our tents on Saturday morning, we looked forward to another cool day which had a chance of rain. Mass was celebrated on the Peabody, Kan. baseball field during a light rain. One of the pilgrims held an umbrella over the makeshift altar for much of the Mass.
