Like a modern-day Johnny Appleseed, Tony Tringale often has
apples on his mind. But while the folk hero was known for
dispersing apple seeds, Tringale has spent much of his life
spreading the word of God as a longtime lector at the
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
in Washington.
Sitting in his window-filled home in Front Royal, located
atop a mountain sprinkled with apple trees, Tringale spoke of
his faith and the apple business he started “pretty much by
accident.”
If there’s any continuity between lectoring and his business,
called “Tony T’s Apple Farm and Kitchen,” it might be the
woman whose photo sits on Tringale’s mantel: his beloved
mother.
“My mother was very devout,” said the 73-year-old parishioner
of St. Bridget of Ireland Mission in Berryville. “And wow,
she was an excellent cook.”
Seeds planted
Both Tringale’s parents were Italian, and he spent his
childhood surrounded by rich food and Catholicism in
Syracuse, N.Y. His mother was a model of faithfulness, and
his father “was never a Sunday-go-to-church Catholic, but he
led a very Christian life,” said Tringale.
Growing up, the smell of steaming meatballs and sausage often
filled his house. “I’ve always enjoyed baking and cooking,
thanks to my mother,” Tringale said. He recalls his mother
once telling him, “Son, if you like to eat, you’d better know
how to cook.”
Tringale’s debut as a lector came in 1960, while he was
studying at Georgetown University and living in Arlington. A
professor and parishioner of St. Ann Church in Arlington
invited him to read during Masses at the parish, and it was a
great fit. Tringale’s faith was as strong as his voice, and
lectoring became a constant even as his life got busier.
After graduation, Tringale began a long and successful career
in insurance and “had a wonderful time” raising four children
in Northern Virginia. He was involved with everything from
the Knights of Columbus and charity work to various community
boards.
It was busyness with a purpose.
“I’ve always had a philosophy in life that we all have a
responsibility to family, church, industry and country,” said
Tringale. “And I’ve tried to be in organizations and
activities that honored that.”
Scripture brought to life
Traveling on business trips, Tringale never missed Mass.
Before the liturgy began, he’d go back to the sacristy and
ask the priest if he needed help with lectoring. Over the
years, Tringale would proclaim Scripture at churches in
countless cities, including Rome.
In 1980, while attending Mass at the national shrine,
Tringale made his usual offer.
“I went back to the sacristy and asked if they had lectors
for the Mass,” he said. “Of course they did, but (they)
suggested I contact them to schedule an audition to be a
future lector.”
Tringale did just that, and for the next 25 years he served
as a lector at the largest church in North America. Twice a
month he’d read from the marble lectern at a Sunday Mass,
looking out at priests and religious, Catholic University
students and professors, local residents, and pilgrims from
around the world.
To prepare to lector, Tringale went over a reading four or
five times, fully internalizing the meaning and making sure
he could pronounce difficult names. Being Italian, “I tend to
put Italian accents on them,” he admitted, laughing.
Tringale thought about the context in which the Scripture
passage was written and how best to convey its message.
“You don’t have to act, but you want to put feeling into it,”
he said.
His favorite liturgies at the shrine were the Easter Vigil
and Christmas Eve Mass. Tringale especially loves the reading
from Exodus about Moses parting the sea. “It’s dramatic and
complicated,” he said.
Corinthians holds a special place in his heart, as well. St.
Paul, though, “should have been given a bag of commas and
periods,” Tringale joked.
During his years lectoring at the shrine, the site became the
location of one of his most treasured moments.
One weekend after Mass while his parents were visiting,
Tringale explained to Msgr. Roger Roensch, a close friend and
then director of the shrine’s pilgrimage office, that his dad
had not been to confession in a long time.
“I’ll take him for a walk,” Tringale recalled Msgr. Roensch
saying. His dad and the monsignor then disappeared for 15
minutes as they walked around the shrine. When they returned,
Msgr. Roensch turned to Tringale, who is an extraordinary
minister of holy Communion, and said, “He’s OK. Why don’t you
give your dad Communion?”
Moments later, in the shrine’s Blessed Sacrament Chapel,
Tringale offered his father the Eucharist. “Dad was in his
late 80s, and it was the first time he’d had Communion in
20-30 years,” he said, wiping away tears. “It was very
special.”
In addition to lectoring, Tringale was a longtime coordinator
for the shrine’s annual Christmas dinner, a meal provided for
the poor and for those who otherwise would be alone.
“In many respects,” said Msgr. Walter Rossi, rector of the
shrine, “Tony proclaimed the word and lived the word he
proclaimed by performing one of the corporal works of mercy.”
Ripe for a change
In 2004, Tringale decided he wanted to be farther from the
fast-paced life of the Washington region and closer to
nature. So after “quasi retiring,” he purchased five acres of
land in Front Royal. Buttressing Shenandoah National Forest,
his house has a breathtaking and nearly 360-degree view of
trees and farmland.
The property had been part of a large apple farm established
in 1911, but the trees on Tringale’s mountaintop land had not
been tended since the 1990s.
Tringale decided to care for the orchard but do it minimally.
“It was never premeditated that I was going to make this an
apple orchard again,” he said. Over time, though, Tringale
found himself immersed in apple farming.
He replaced old trees and had the soil tested to ensure he
could grow organically. Two hives house bees that pollinate
the 200 trees, which bear varieties such as Yellow Delicious,
Red Delicious and Sheep’s Nose, an heirloom apple originating
in New England.
Eventually Tringale began making apple cider from the fruit,
squeezing out the juice with a traditional wooden press. His
small business grew, and Tony T’s Apple Farm and Kitchen now
offers homemade goodies like orange walnut cake, chocolate
chip cookies, dumplings and pies at farmers markets in Front
Royal and The Plaines.
It’s not a lucrative business and it’s hard work: Twice a
month he’s in the kitchen baking from 6 a.m. to midnight.
Yet Tringale, who stopped lectoring at the shrine in 2005 but
regularly reads at St. Bridget, finds his rural life
satisfying. Farmers markets give him a chance to socialize
with neighbors and enjoy the friendliness of Front Royal.
“Life is slower here and everybody knows everybody,” he said.
“You can be close to God anywhere,” Tringale said. “But when
you are in this kind of environment, you do feel closer in a
special way.” People become justifiably busy raising families
and building careers, he added, “but we all need to take time
to stop and smell the roses – no, stop and pray – and to be
appreciative of what we see.”
With his lectoring and his apple-baking business, Tringale
has a legacy of helping others appreciate both God’s spoken
word and His created world – and some of the scrumptious
goodies that can be made from its abundance.
Scott can be reached at [email protected] or on
Twitter @KScottACH.
Find out more
To learn more about Tony T’s Apple Farm and Kitchen and where
and when you can buy Tringale’s goodies, go to apple–farm.com.
