The seminary has made two provisions recently that continue this tradition of encouraging physical conditioning among its resident seminarians.
These are the construction last year of a
quarter-mile running track that is used
regularly by the seminarian community
and the upgrading of the seminary’s exercise equipment through the outstanding generosity of donors.
Sacred Heart’s four exercise rooms
were already reasonably well-furnished
and thoroughly utilized by seminarians
and resident priests alike. Racquetball
courts, free weights, weight machines,
aerobic equipment, and punching bags
provided plenty of exercise opportunities for the men. Yet, some of the equipment was beginning to show its age.
Recently, though, a benefactor who
asked to remain anonymous has donated exercise equipment to the seminary.
It is all top-flight, state-of-the-art equipment, with an estimated fair market value of over $230,000. The list of items
is so extensive that only a few items are
mentioned here.
Because of this generous in-kind donation, one seminarian exercise room is
now outfitted with a Life Fitness bench
press, pull-down machine, bicep curl
machine, and a Cybex inclined chest
press. A second room includes six stateof-the-art treadmills with touchscreen
consoles, a self-powered bicycle, and
a Stair Master stairclimber. In a third
room, eleven Cybex selectorized weight
machines have been installed.
The exercise room of the resident
priests has not been short-changed, either. The priests now can work out on a
Tuff Stuff row machine, pull-up/dip station, and cable cross-over machine, as
well as two True treadmills and a True
self-powered bicycle.
“The priests and seminarians of Sacred Heart are overwhelmed by the generosity of this gift,” says Dean of Studies
Fr. Timothy Laboe, who enjoys lifting
weights and utilizing the aerobic equipment to keep in good physical shape.
“The exercise equipment is extensive,
of the highest quality, and should satisfy the fitness needs at the seminary for
years to come.”
Of course, the goal of a priest-graduate of the seminary is not to look like
Charles Atlas when he leaves the seminary and begins his tenure in your parish. He will, however, know that maintaining a heathy lifestyle is a sure way to
improve his spirituality while also modeling an image of healthy conditioning
to his parishioners.
2.
Do you have ideas for
donating in-kind property
to the seminary? (In-kind
means property other than
cash, such as stocks, mutual
funds, insurance policies, real
estate, and the like.) Contact
Darren Hogan, associate
director of charitable gift
planning, 313-596-7404,
[email protected],
to learn more.
Captions:
1. Taking a break from working out on
newly-donated fitness equipment are
seminarians Nathan Grant, Andrew Mabee,
John Machiorlatti, Adam Maher, and Christopher Muer.
2. Adam Maher pushes his heartrate up on
a new elliptical machine.
3. The formation of future priests is
focused on the whole person, including physical wellbeing. Seminarians are
encouraged to develop healthy habits of
physical fitness that will carry over when
they become parish priests.
3.
shms.edu
17