By Mary Frances McCarthy
Herald Staff Writer
(From the issue of 6/26/03)

After serving God’s people for 47 years from the Tidewater area to Purcellville, and the mountains of the Dominican Republic, Msgr. Thomas J. Cassidy retired from active ministry on June 25.

While retirement may connote rest and relaxation for many, Msgr. Cassidy seems to have other plans.

While residing at St. Mark Parish in Vienna, he hopes to continue to offer Mass, unless he is touring Italy, on a cruise to Alaska or sailing the Greek islands of Greece, as he has dreamed of doing for several years.

"I want to get away, see some of the world the Lord has created," Msgr. Cassidy said. "I’ll rest in between trips."

Msgr. Cassidy will spend the next week at St. Francis de Sales Parish in Purcellville to assist Father Patrick Posey when he arrives at the parish from Bánica, where he has been serving as pastor of the diocesan mission for seven years.

On July 1, Msgr. Cassidy will return to St. Mark Parish in Vienna, where he served as pastor for 16 years, from 1973-89.

Msgr. Cassidy was born on Sept. 25, 1928, to Patrick H. and Anna Laura Cassidy in Philadelphia, Pa. He was the youngest of their three children. His oldest sister, Peggy, is deceased, and the middle child, Sally, lives in Florida with her husband.

Msgr. Cassidy said his vocation was "one of those things I grew up with." There were five or six priests in residence at his parish in Philadelphia where he was raised and he said he "got a lot of inspiration from them. They all were really very, very good clergy."

He considered entering the seminary at the end of eighth grade, but his parents convinced him, their youngest child and only son, to first finish high school, and if he still felt called to then pursue the priesthood.

After finishing high school, Msgr. Cassidy entered the seminary and graduated from Holy Name College in Washington, D.C., in 1956.

Msgr. Cassidy originally studied with the Franciscans, but decided to become a diocesan priest. The Franciscans suggested he go to Virginia because it was a "good diocese with a good spirit among the priests."

The bishop of Richmond agreed to give him a six-month probationary period to decide if he could stay in Virginia, and he was ordained a priest by Auxiliary Bishop Joseph J. Hodges on Sept. 26, 1957.

Because he was ordained in the fall, and not in the spring with the rest of his class, Msgr. Cassidy said he, like St. Paul, is "one born out of due time." He was quick to add, "and that’s the only resemblance to St. Paul I can boast of."

Msgr. Cassidy’s first priestly assignment was parochial vicar of St. Elizabeth Parish in Richmond. He served there until 1960 when he became director of Catholic Charities of Northern Virginia. After holding that position for nine years, he was transferred to the Tidewater region and served as director of Catholic Family and Children’s Services and director of St. Mary’s Infant Home in Norfolk.

Msgr. Cassidy returned to Northern Virginia in 1973, when he arrived at St. Mark Parish in Vienna and "set roots" at the parish he would call home for 16 years.

Margie Carson, a parishioner at St. Mark, said "It was through his wonderful ministry that Jim [her husband] became a Catholic, a fact that has meant so much to our marriage through the years." Jim Carson added, "Msgr. Cassidy put a face on the Catholic Church for me and was a big factor in my becoming Catholic."

While at St. Mark Parish, in 1983, he was named a monsignor along with Msgr. John O’Connell, now deceased; Msgr. James McMurtrie, of St. Agnes Parish in Arlington; and Msgr. Frank Mahler of St. James Parish in Falls Church.

Msgr. Cassidy left St. Mark Parish in 1989 to serve as pastor at St. Anthony Parish in Falls Church for five years, before traveling to the Dominican Republic. He said serving as pastor in Bánica was "good for me, I’m not sure it was good for the Dominicans." While he enjoyed living with and serving the people of Bánica, Msgr. Cassidy did not feel he spoke Spanish fluent enough to fulfill his obligation to them as their pastor.

After returning to the states, Msgr. Cassidy was parochial vicar at St. Ann Parish in Arlington for six months. In 1997, he was called to the country after the Capuchin Fathers left St. Francis de Sales Parish in Purcellville. He celebrated the 50th anniversary of his ordination there in 2002, and will soon be saying goodbye when he travels back to Vienna.

While Msgr. Cassidy will enjoy having the time to travel and maybe rest a little, he will miss being a facilitator. "As I’ve gotten older, I’ve mellowed a bit. I’m kind of a control person. Sometimes that can be good, sometimes not so good."

A parishioner of St. Mark Parish once deemed Msgr. Cassidy as the "facilitator of other people’s charisms." Msgr. Cassidy explained his actions that led up to this label. He said, "If you can’t do it well, there’s someone out there who can, and you better delegate."

While Msgr. Cassidy has played several different roles, in several different areas, he says he has enjoyed them all equally. "They’ve all been good assignments," he said. "I’ve been fortunate and blessed. The good Lord was looking out for me. I guess He realized, ‘I better watch this guy.’"