In Memoriam - Thomas P. Munster, CM

Reverend Thomas P. Munster, CM, who held a number of key positions at DePaul University and the former DePaul Academy over the course of a career that spanned nearly 60 years, died on December 7, 2007. He was 85.

The son of Martin and Catherine (nee Browne) Munster, Fr. Munster was born on March 7, 1922. He grew up in Chicago and graduated in 1935 from St. Vincent’s School, the now-closed grammar school of St. Vincent de Paul Parish. Fr. Munster attended St. Vincent’s College, the Vincentian high school seminary in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, graduating in 1940. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at St. Mary’s Seminary in Perryville, Missouri, and continued his theological studies there before being ordained in 1948. He earned a master’s degree in English from DePaul University in 1953.

Shortly after ordination, he returned home to Chicago and became a member of the faculty at DePaul Academy, the all-boys high school sponsored by the Vincentians. Fr. Munster taught English, Latin and religion. From 1952 to 1957, he served as dean of men at the school. In 1957, he was named principal, a post he held until 1965 when he joined DePaul University as director of high school relations, a newly formed position. After serving two years in that role, Fr. Munster was named DePaul’s Director of Admissions, a role he held for the next 14 years.

In 1981, he was named Superior of DePaul Vincentian Residence, which had been his home since 1952. He returned to the university in 1990 as Vice Chancellor in Advancement, working closely with the Athletic Department. “Fr. Tom Munster was not only DePaul’s institutional memory, but a real treasure to our Athletic Department and the entire university community,” said Athletic Director Jean Lenti Ponsetto. “We will always remember him as a great ambassador of DePaul’s values, a servant to the needy with a kind and open heart to all who crossed his path.”

Fr. Munster was keenly interested in the state of the Lincoln Park neighborhood in which he was raised. To revitalize the neighborhood, he helped found two neighborhood organizations: the Lincoln Park Conservation Association and the Sheffield Neighborhood Association. For many years, Father Munster celebrated Sunday Mass at St. Tarcissus Catholic Church in Chicago.

He is survived by a brother and his family, of Chicago: Martin, wife Margaret, and their children Catherine (James) Hartnett, Patricia (James) Suszka, and Sean Munster.

Requiescat in Pacem!

The Vincentian, Earth City, Mo., March, 2008