A long-time priest plans to retire Feb. 1 as chaplain of Will County Sheriff’s office, officials said.
The Rev. Vytas Memanas, 87, has been a chaplain with the department for 14 years and one for various law enforcement agencies for more than four decades.
Born the son of a police officer in Lithuania in 1929, Memanas was 11 years old when the Soviets took control of his country and targeted his father for being a police officer for independent Lithuania, according to a sheriff office statement. At age 15, his family fled to Germany where they lived in a refugee camp for five years.
In 1950, his family entered a refugee program that brought them to Cicero. He stayed in Europe, however, because he received a scholarship to study in Rome, and was ordained a priest by Pope Pius XII in 1957. Soon after rejoining his family in Illinois, he joined the Diocese of Joliet.
Memanas credits his experiences during World War II for his special empathy for police officers, the statement said. He served as chaplain to police departments in Joliet and Frankfort, as well as the Illinois State Lodge, the International Chiefs of Police, the Fraternal order of Protection Illinois State Lodge, and many others, the statement said.
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“During his service to us, he went to crime scenes, he did ride-a-longs with deputies, often hearing their confessions, he performed marriages, and baptized several children, he has visited countless sick and dying members of our department and their family members, and has presided over many of our funerals,” the statement said.
A celebration for Memanas will be Feb. 23 for his law enforcement friends and their families. It will be held at the sheriff’s office, 25 N. Ottawa St., second floor in downtown Joliet.
Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.