Retired Schaumburg pastor and Vietnam-era Air Force chaplain dies at 99
Rev. George J. Kane, the longest-ordained priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago and founding pastor and pastor emeritus of Church of the Holy Spirit in Schaumburg, died Monday at the age of 99.
The Chicago native and Vietnam-era Air Force chaplain, who was ordained in 1951, told the Daily Herald in 2023 that he believed the discipline he acquired as a military chaplain helped foster the leadership skills he had as a faculty member at St. Mary of the Lake University/Mundelein Seminary and the various Archdiocese of Chicago parishes where he served.
And that was especially true of his 24 years at Church of the Holy Spirit — now part of St. Gregory of Nyssa Parish — before his 1996 retirement, he said.
“The military has goals, and structures to effect those goals, and I think I picked that up,” Kane said. “I wanted to be my own boss. I chose the Air Force because I knew I'd be the only Catholic priest on the base, unlike in the Army or the Navy. I made good choices. Obedience and docility don't suit me so well. I think (my students and parishioners) benefited greatly from this trait in myself.”
Kane qualified for an Honor Flight in 2023 because of his year stationed in South Korea, where the Air Force was training Korean pilots to fly jets.
But the trip to Washington was more relevant to him because of a later assignment in Florida in the early 1960s, when he counseled young men preparing for possible combat in Vietnam.
“I think (Honor Flight) was another opportunity for me, at 97, to share the experience of people who served in Vietnam,” Kane said. “You realize the real cost of war when you see those memorials. These were real people.”
Rev. John Hoffman, another retired archdiocesan priest, had known Kane since his seminary internship at Kane’s parish more than 50 years ago.
“He was a great homilist, wicked smart and had a great sense of humor,” Hoffman said in a statement.
Hoffman added that Kane was often invited as a speaker and would offer TED Talk-style sessions on spirituality and the structure and mission of the Catholic Church. He was also a supporter of women’s participation and Vatican II.
Very Rev. Gregory Sakowicz, rector of Holy Name Cathedral, said he had lost not only a dear friend of 49 years but also a mentor.
“He was a man of compassion and a Vatican II priest through and through,” Sakowicz said in a statement. “He would tell people ‘you are the Church and together we are the body of Christ.’”
Visitation for Kane will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 11 at Holy Family Parish, 2515 W. Palatine Road in Inverness, with a prayer service at 7 p.m.
Another visitation will take place from 9 to 10:15 a.m. Saturday, April 12 at Church of the Holy Spirit of St. Gregory of Nyssa Parish, 1451 Bode Road in Schaumburg.
The funeral Mass will follow there at 10:30 a.m. Hoffman will celebrate the funeral Mass and Sakowicz will be the homilist. Interment will be at All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines.