Local history: Monks led strict life at Coventry monastery

“You must give up the right to own anything for yourself.”

“You must give up the pleasures of the world, even of your own body.”

“You must give up the right to decide things for yourself.”

Most people would never follow such orders today, but those were the rules for young men at a Catholic monastery that operated for more than 20 years in Coventry Township. The Carmelite monks at Infant of Prague Villa took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.

In 1946, the Carmelites selected an 80-acre site, originally part of a 500-acre farm, to establish a seminary at Main Street and Killian Road. The property included a brick farmhouse built by David Thornton in 1844.

William Henry Perrin’s 1881 history describes the old homestead near East Reservoir as “one of the finest pleasure-grounds” in Summit County, a Portage Lakes resort for boating and fishing. The Thorntons, Millers and Wellocks were among the families to reside there over the decades.

The Infant of Prague Villa was one of 25 Carmelite monasteries in the country when it opened Sept. 21, 1947. The Rev. Edward B. Conry and the Rev. Angelo Trivisonno blessed the farmhouse, which was topped with a simple wooden cross.

The Rev. Alphonsus Croake, prior of the villa, and the Rev. Mario Dittami, the subprior, welcomed an inaugural class of 10 students from New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan and Illinois. The brothers wore brown robes with hoods, except for special rites in which they donned white robes.

Frugal life and hard work

The men, mostly in their 20s, slept on the second floor in small cubicles whose modest furnishings included a cot, locker, crucifix and Bible.

“This Akron seminary is the only place in the world where young men can get as specialized training in ascetical theology and dogmatic moral theory as we are giving,” Father Mario explained in 1947. “They also get the other type courses: typing, bookkeeping, accounting, business English, as well as training in the trades.”

It was a frugal, laborious life. They tended gardens, tilled fields, grew crops, raised farm animals and sold eggs to the public. They learned carpentry, plumbing, tailoring, barbering and other skills. And they prayed and prayed.

The friars arose at 6 a.m. each day and celebrated Mass in the basement chapel. They took morning classes, returned to the chapel to pray and spent the rest of the day on religious duties, household chores and outdoor labor. The men enjoyed daily recreation, playing baseball, swimming, fishing or doing other activities.

For meals, they huddled together around an oval table and dined on fruit and vegetables grown on the farm.

The lights went out at 9:30 p.m. The next day, the routine resumed.

Pet dog roamed monastery

The monks had a dog, Cinder, a black cocker spaniel who had the run of the monastery except for the chapel. He was the only one allowed to eat meat on Fridays. The brothers taught him to sit up, roll over and shake hands.

A special trick always delighted visitors:

“A Protestant,” Father Mario told Cinder.

The dog extended his left paw.

“No, I have made a mistake,” the priest said. “The visitor is a Catholic.”

Cinder put out his right paw instead.

Father Mario, who was named prior in 1951, oversaw the expansion of the monastery. In 1953, work was completed on a new main building, which included a dormitory, chapel and dining room.

Archbishop Edward F. Hoban presided over the dedication with the aid of parish priests including the Rev. Richard A. Dowed of the Church of the Annunciation, the Rev. Michael Domladovac of Christ the King, the Rev. Vincent Balmat of St. Augustine, the Rev. Edward Conry of St. Vincent, the Rev. Carl Frey of St. Martha and the Rev. Clement Boeke of St. Paul.

The Carmelites also built three shrines on the grounds. The Infant of Prague Circle, a women’s group that assisted the monastery, raised money for the projects.

The first shrine, a tribute to the Infant of Prague, was built in 1951 with stones from the foundation of the old Thornton barn. The second landmark, dedicated in 1954, featured an Italian sculpture of Mary holding baby Jesus. The third shrine, unveiled in 1955, presented a marble statue of Jesus standing on a conical base.

The monastery averaged 15 to 20 brothers in the 1950s. During ancient rites, the men vowed to live in poverty, remain chaste, obey authority and serve God. They trained for two years at Infant of Prague Villa and completed their studies at a seminary in New York. After five years, they took vows that bound them for life.

“While we, too, want freedom, we do not hold we may have the choice of believing what we choose to believe,” Father Mario noted. “Our view is that we must accept what God wants us to believe and only that.”

During the Cold War, the monastery was designated a disaster evacuation center with enough food to feed 200 for a month. The Carmelites sold 15 acres along East Reservoir for developers to subdivide into 28 lots. The National Weather Service at Akron-Canton Airport set up a substation at the monastery to measure climate.

Changing times at seminary

Father Mario left in 1957 for a post in Chicago. Over the next decade, the Infant of Prague Villa saw a rapid succession of priors: the Rev. Bertrand J. Malone, the Rev. Stanley Kromer, the Rev. Ambrose Casey and the Rev. Leonard Kinzler.

Poverty, chastity and obedience were a tough sell in the late 1960s. By then, only four friars remained at the monastery.

The Carmelites decided to shut down the operation in 1970. They auctioned off farm machinery, poultry equipment, office supplies, musical instruments, hand tools, shotguns and other items.

“It’s a lack of vocation that’s forcing us to close,” explained Father Leonard, the last prior at the monastery. “Not enough men want to become brothers, and those who do, don’t want to get into this end of it.”

Treatment for alcoholism

The complex at 3445 S. Main St. wasn’t vacant for long. The Carmelites leased and eventually sold the property to Interval Brotherhood Home, a nonprofit that treated alcoholics. The home provided shelter, food, medicine and training programs, allowing residents to get back on their feet.

Trustees were the Rev. Samuel R. Ciccolini of St. Anthony, the Rev. John J. Hilkert of St. Mary and the Rev. George Van Doren of St. Peter.

“Each person at the home is treated with dignity and respect and is recognized as a very important part of the community of man,” Ciccolini explained in 1971.

Interval Brotherhood helped thousands of souls during the 40 years that Ciccolini served as executive director. The local icon known as “Father Sam” stepped down in 2010 amid a high-profile scandal.

He served six months in federal prison after being convicted of filing false tax returns and committing bank fraud. He also admitted to embezzling from the IBH Foundation, but paid back the money during the investigation.

After Ciccolini’s departure, IBH weathered the crisis, recruiting new board members, maintaining the support of community partners and undergoing a financial audit that found no public funds had been misappropriated.

Hope, healing, recovery at IBH

The 10-building complex is known today as IBH Addiction Recovery. Its programs focus on alcohol and drug addiction, including outpatient and day treatment, with the mission to provide clients “the opportunity to restore hope and gain skills for a lifetime of sobriety.”

The motto is “Hope. Heal. Recover.”

The monks have been gone for over 50 years, but their buildings still stand. The 1844 farmhouse serves as administrative offices. The 1953 building, large chicken coops and a former barn have been converted into housing.

“We’ve tried to preserve as much as we can,” said Jess Rist, chief operating officer of IBH.

Strolling among the shade trees, rolling hills, walking paths and green spaces, it’s easy to imagine monks roaming the property. It’s quiet and peaceful, an ideal setting for reflection.

The monastery’s history is preserved in documents, photographs and stone artifacts.

The old shrines remain. Passing motorists can glimpse them behind the white fence along South Main Street. IBH clients visit the landmarks and visitors make special pilgrimages.

“People still come here to pray,” Rist said.

Mark J. Price can be reached at mprice@thebeaconjournal.com

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This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Monks led strict life at Infant of Prague Villa in Coventry