Rev. Gregory (Zbigniew) Patejko—Assignment Record

Summary of Case: On 2/28/94 the Fargo diocese settled a claim that Patejko sexually abused a boy during his 1972-1979 assignment as pastor at St. Andrew's in Zeeland ND.

Born: November 17, 1930 in Warsaw, Poland
Ordained: April 4, 1953
U.S. Citizenship: April 15, 1975
Incardinated: Trenton NJ 1968-72; Fargo ND 1972-81; Austin TX 1981-93.

     

Start Stop Parish Town State Position Notes

1953

Ordinaries were Tadeusz Paweł Zakrzewski (1946-1961), Apostolic Administrator Jan Wosiński (1961-1964), and
Bogdan Marian Sikorski (1964-1988).

 1965

Church of the Assumption

 Somianka Poland

Assistant pastor 1953-1955.

Pastor 1955-1965.

Not indexed in the 1954-1968 Official Catholic Directory.

At the time, the parish was in the Płock diocese, but it is now in the Łomża diocese. See webpage, a cached version of the webpage, and a Google translation.

For confirmation that this is the same Patejko, see the history of St. Agatha's in Hope ND.
1967   Polish Mission Limburg Holland   A Zbigniew Patejko was assigned in Limburg, the Netherlands, in 1967. See webpage, a cached version of the webpage, and a Google translation.

1968

Bishop was George W. Ahr (1950-1979)

 

 

 1971 St. Stanislaus Sayreville NJ 2/2. Priests were Rev. Ladislaus J. Madura and Patejko.

Indexed as a priest of the Trenton diocese. Name is given in Directory as Zbigniew Patejko.

Parish school had 396 pupils in 1968-1969.
1971 1972 St. Mary's (Polish) South River NJ 2/2. Priests were Revs. Michael J. Kseniak and Patejko.

Indexed as a priest of the Trenton diocese. Name is given in Directory as Zbigniew Patejko.

Parish school had 432 pupils in 1971-1972, and two "special teachers" were assigned there..

1972

Bishop was Justin A. Driscoll (1970-1984)

 7/79 St. Andrew's

Zeeland

• On 2/28/94 the Fargo diocese settled a claim that Patejko sexually abused a boy in 1976 during this assignment. The settlement was witnessed for the diocese by Rev. Wendelyn Vetter, vicar general.

 ND 1/1. Pastor. Indexed as a priest of the Fargo diocese. Name is given in 1973 Directory index as Zbigniew Patejko, and in the 1973 Fargo diocesan pages as Z. Gregory Patejko. See parish history.
1972 7/79 St. David's Ashley ND 1/1. Pastor. Mission of St. Andrew's in Zeeland. See parish history.
7/22/79 1981 St. Agatha's Hope ND 1/1. Pastor. Indexed as a priest of the Fargo diocese. Name is given in 1979 Directory index as Gregory Patejko. See the parish history. In the 1980 and 1981 Directory, the acronym S.Th.M. appears after Patejko's name, indicating that he had been awarded a Master of Sacred Theology degree.
7/22/79 1981 St. James Page ND 1/1. Pastor. Mission of St. Agatha's in Hope.
9/80 1981 Sacred Heart Aneta ND 1/1. Pastor. Mission of St. Agatha's in Hope.

1981

Bishop was Vincent M. Harris (1971-1985)

 1982 St. Joseph's Bryan TX 3/3. Priests were Revs. John E. Driscoll, Patrick J. Zurek, and Patejko.

Indexed as a priest of the Austin diocese. Name is given in 1982 Directory index as Gregory Patejko.

Parish school had 281 pupils in 1981-1982.
1982 1985 Holy Trinity Llano TX 1/1. Pastor.  
1982 1985 St. Joseph's Mason TX 1/1. Pastor. Mission of Holy Trinity in Llano.

7/12/85

Bishop was John E. McCarthy (1985-2001)

 

 5/93 St. Stanislaus

Chappell Hill

• On 2/28/94 the Fargo diocese settled a claim that Patejko sexually abused a boy during his 1972-1979 assignment as pastor at St. Andrew's in Zeeland ND.

 

 TX 1/1. Pastor. In the 1993 Directory, data for the catechesis program at St. Stanislaus was included for the first time. Mrs. Bernadine Bosse was the director, and there were 55 students. See article on Patejko at St. Stanislaus, which states that Patejko returned to Poland in 1993.

Source: Official Catholic Directory (New York: Kenedy & Sons, 1954-1993).

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Patejko's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory and other sources with an allegation that was settled by the Fargo diocese. The record does not state or imply that individuals facing allegations are guilty of a crime or liable for civil claims. The report contained in the record is merely an allegation. The U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements.

This assignment record was last updated on May 4, 2009.