Upper Midwest Jesuits | Chicago-Detroit Province

Br. Joseph A. Shubitowski, SJ

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January 21, 1935 to May 29, 2011
Cleveland, Ohio

Br. Joseph A. Shubitowski, SJ, skilled tradesman and Jesuit brother for over fifty years, died on May 29, 2011, in Cleveland, Ohio.  Br. Shubitowski was born to Bernard Shubitowski and Eleanor Schulte on January 21, 1935, in Detroit, Michigan.  He is survived by two brothers, Bernard and Paul.

“Joe was a remarkable man; there was nothing he couldn’t do, and he would use his skills to help people any way he could,” says Fr. Norman Dickson, SJ, longtime friend and classmate.  “He was stubborn in a good way; he would settle for nothing but the best, and he was always looking to improve upon his work.”

After attending St. Cecelia’s school in Detroit, Michigan, for 12 years, Br. Shubitowski graduated in 1953, and immediately entered the Society of Jesus on March 13, 1954, in Milford, Ohio.  He began his Jesuit career working in general maintenance at Loyola Retreat House (now Jesuit Spiritual Center at Milford), and served in various schools across the Midwest including John Carroll University, the University of Detroit High School and Academy.  Br. Shubitowski spent 15 years (1965-1980) at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, tending to maintenance needs and acting as superintendent, during which time he professed final vows on August 15, 1965.  While at Walsh Jesuit, Br. Joe spent a lot of time with longtime friend Fr. Jack White, SJ.  “We would spend a lot of time playing poker and golfing.”  “He loved to golf, he wasn’t great at it,” joked Fr. White, “but he loved the game nonetheless.”

In 1980, Br. Shubitowski was asked to oversee the building of Loyola High School in Wau, Sudan.  He readily accepted, and spent the next six years supervising the construction.  “Without him, there wouldn’t be a school,” explains Fr. Dickson.  “Two years after Joe left Walsh Jesuit, I volunteered to go to Sudan; it gave me confidence knowing Joe was there.”  As the Sudanese Civil War began in 1983, the military took control of the school, and Br. Shubitowski returned to the U.S. to aid in rehabilitating buildings in Detroit, Michigan.

Again receiving a call to action, Br. Joe spent six years (1990-1996) in Tanzania aiding the construction of the Jesuit Novitiate in Arush, as well as the Rwanda Refugee Camp with the Jesuit Refugee Service.  Ten years later, Br. Joe returned to Sudan to help with the reconstruction and reopening of Loyola High School after the Jesuits regained control of the school.

In 2008, Br. Shubitowski joined the grounds and maintenance department at Jesuit Retreat House in Parma, Ohio, where he worked for the remainder of his years.

“I always felt inspired by Joe,” says George Davis, who was a driver on Br. Shubitowski’s bus fleet at Walsh Jesuit High School.

“He had a sense about him, an integrity that stood out.  He will be greatly missed,” says Fr. Dickson.

Memorial gifts:

Memorial gifts may be made to The Jesuits, 2050 N. Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60614.

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