VERMONT
WCAX
[with video]
By Roger Garrity
By Kyle Midura
BURLINGTON, Vt. –
It’s the end of an era for Vermont’s Catholics. Former Bishop Kenneth Angell has died. He passed away Tuesday at a nursing home in Winooski after suffering a stroke last week. He was 86.
Angell was the leader of Vermont’s Catholic diocese for 13 years. His tenure saw the church begin to deal with priest sex abuse cases. And Bishop Angell endured personal tragedy when his brother, an Emmy-winning TV producer, died in the 9/11 terror attacks. But Angell maintained his warm and friendly demeanor.
“So whether he was visiting a grade school or visiting a nursing home or going to a prison to say mass, I think everybody who met him would have said they met somebody who was very, very kind and kindness goes a long way,” said Monsignor John McDermott of the Catholic Diocese of Burlington.
Bishop Angell was from Rhode Island, but he loved Vermont and stayed here after his retirement. The diocese says his health had only recently been in decline, leading to his stroke.
Angell was 62 years old when he was named the eighth Bishop of the Burlington Catholic Diocese in November 1992. Almost immediately thereafter, the leader of Vermont’s largest religious denomination was faced with crisis. Accusers came forward alleging physical, sexual and mental abuse going back to the 1940s at the church-run St. Joseph’s Orphanage. While dozens of the cases were settled, the scandal prompted Angell to create a review board to investigate allegations of abuse in the church.
“I pray this will signal new beginnings for this church in Vermont as we struggle to reconcile with those in grievance with us for past accusations of abuse,” he said at the time.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.