Background
Monsignor Edward Joseph Flanagan was born on July 13, 1886, at Roscommon, County Roscommon, Ireland. His parents were John (a herdsman) and Honoria Flanagan.
(Father Edward J. Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, consulta...)
Father Edward J. Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, consultant to presidents and generals, immortalized on the Hollywood screen, was known and revered throughout the world. In a voice that carried the cadence of County Roscommon, his Irish birthplace, he spoke passionately on issues of youth and family before countless audiences over 30 years' time. This book is a collection of his inspirational thoughts on the needs of children, the important of faith and family, the value of hard work and sacrifice, the components of character, and the measurement of success. Thought-provoking and motivational!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1889322008/?tag=2022091-20
Monsignor Edward Joseph Flanagan was born on July 13, 1886, at Roscommon, County Roscommon, Ireland. His parents were John (a herdsman) and Honoria Flanagan.
Prior to his removal to the United States in 1904, he attended Summerhill College in Sligo, Ireland. He received his A. B. degree from Mt. St. Mary's College, Emmitsburg, Md. , in 1906, and his A. M. in 1908. He also studied at St. Joseph's Seminary at Dunwoodie, N. Y. , from 1906 to 1907; the Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, from 1907 to 1908; and for three years (1909 - 1912) in the Jesuit University at Innsbruck, Austria, where he was ordained in 1912.
Returning to the United States, Father Flanagan became assistant pastor of St. Patrick's parish at O'Neill, Nebraska, in 1912, and the following year assistant pastor of a parish of the same name in Omaha, Nebraska.
He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1919. As his first effort toward giving assistance to the needy, Father Flanagan founded the Workingmen's Hotel in Omaha in 1914, and also a welfare home for the poor. In 1917, with a nucleus of five boys, he founded a Home for Homeless Boys. The following year it was moved 11 miles (17 km) west of Omaha, Neb. , and was called Boys Town.
Father Flanagan, who sincerely believed his own assertion that "there are no bad boys, " sought to achieve the rehabilitation of underprivileged and delinquent boys through a program of self-government and self-discipline.
Father Flanagan was for ten years president of the Omaha Welfare Board, and in 1930 was voted "First Citizen" by the Omaha post of the American Legion. In 1937 Father Flanagan was named a domestic prelate by Pope Pius XI with the title of Right Reverend Monsignor. He wrote numerous articles and pamphlets on the problems of juvenile delinquency.
In 1947 he made a tour of Japan at the invitation of the United States Government to inspect the youth facilities of that country; while on a similar tour of Germany he died in Berlin on May 15, 1948.
(Father Edward J. Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, consulta...)