| Our "Bulge" Chaplain |
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| On Wall Street in New York City, there is a church called Our Lady of Victory. This “War Memorial Church” was built in 1945 at the direction of Cardinal Francis Spellman, the Army’s Military Vicar, to honor those who died in the Battle of the Bulge and other battles of World War II. Above the main entrance of the church is a stained glass window of a Catholic chaplain saying Mass on the hood of a jeep. Whenever I see that window, I think of our “Bulge” chaplain, Lieutenant Regis J. Galvin, OFM. |
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| Father Galvin was a member of the Order of Friars Minor (the Franciscan Friars). In 1942, he volunteered to serve in the Chaplains’ Corps. He received his first lieutenant’s commission and entered the Army’s chaplain training school at Ft. Benjamin Harrison in Indiana. Lieutenant Galvin’s first assignment was as chaplain to the 309th Infantry Regiment of the 78th Infantry Division at Camp Butner in North Carolina. He then served as an Army chaplain in Alaska and the Yukon (the Aleutian Islands Campaign), before being assigned to the 11th Armored Division of General Patton’s Third U.S. Army (“Patton’s Thunderbolts”) as chaplain to its Combat Command Reserve and its 55th Armored Infantry Battalion. |
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| Many Thunderbolts still remember Father Galvin’s deep concern for their spiritual welfare during the “Bulge”. As we departed Ebly, Belgium for the front lines on December 30, 1944, Father Galvin, wearing his stole and helmet, drove the entire length of the Battalion’s column to give General Absolution to the Catholic soldiers, and some kind words and a blessing to the Protestant and Jewish soldiers. And at lulls in the fighting during the “Bulge” in January of 1945, Father Galvin drove up to our position on the front lines, donned his alb, stole and chasuble, and said Mass for us on the hood of his jeep. |
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| Our “Bulge” chaplain also ministered to the Thunderbolts in the Rhineland and Central Europe Campaigns. He was awarded the Bronze Star and three campaign medals for his service to his country, and gained the admiration and gratitude of all those who called him their chaplain. |
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| When the war ended, Father Galvin joined the faculty of St Bonaventure University as a professor of history. He taught there for 23 years, and then served as a parish priest for eight years. He retired in 1976, and passed away in 1988. |
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| Father Galvin’s genuine concern for others was the hallmark of his ministry – whether on the battlefield, in the classroom or in the parish. His deep regard for others is only surpassed by the high esteem in which he is still held today by those whom he served. |
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| Patrick J. KEARNEY |
"A" Company
55th Armored Infantry
Battalion
11th Armored Division
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55th Armored Inf Bn. Emblem
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Campaigns
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Battle of the Bulge,
Belgium
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