New podcast calculates the cost of silence in Norwich diocese
Apr. 28—We urge you to listen to the first episode of The Day's newest podcast, "Cost of Silence," to understand the price our region is paying for the sexual abuse of children in the Catholic Diocese of Norwich.
You'll hear first from those who paid dearest ― adult survivors of clergy abuse who decided they would be silent no more.
We're introducing the podcast with an interview of Tim McGuire, who talks of how, as an aspiring altar boy, he was told, "You're not what God's looking for" by a priest after finding the courage to stop allowing the priest to molest him.
We knew we had to go into the recording studio after hearing Night News Editor Joe Wojtas directing coverage of the pending diocese bankruptcy case and the upcoming sale of St. Bernard School to fund the bankruptcy. Wojtas has reported on the abuse, and its cover up by the local diocese, for nearly 25 years, interviewing many victims.
"It was happening all around the country, so I started looking into, what did our people know and how did they handle it," Wojtas said in the newsroom. "Because of what they did, now it's costing them."
Wojtas chronicled how, like other Catholic organizations throughout the country, the Norwich diocese had knowingly exposed children to sexual abuse by clergy members, transferring the offenders from parish to parish after receiving information they were molesting children. The diocese did not report the allegations to police and quietly paid out millions in settlements to victims.
The children whose innocence was stolen are direct victims, but we all pay when members of the community are damaged so profoundly. Those now facing the sale of their school, including the St. Bernard community, are suffering too.
You'll hear from Wojtas and attorney Kelly Reardon, who has represented about 25 abuse victims, in the second episode of "Cost of Silence." Reardon is incredibly well-versed in the legal nuances of the case. She shares her expertise graciously and provides an inside look at the work, saying it's not unusual to have grown men crying during meetings in the firm's New London office.
In the third episode, St. Bernard Head of School Don Macrino, who has been forthright about the case, while remaining hopeful of a good outcome, talks about the anxiety resulting from the impending sale, how the school is communicating the difficult issue with students and the safeguards now in place to protect children.
We also interviewed for Episode 3 local businessman Tony Lowe, a St. Bernard alumnus and parent who attributes his success to the school and speaks of how he's digesting the priest abuse. He, too, was honest about how he grappled with the information that children in the diocese had been abused.
I am honored to work on "Cost of Silence" with Wojtas, a relentless truth-seeker, and Assistant Managing Editor Carlos Virgen, who brings his podcast production, editing and narrating skills to the project. We spoke briefly during production about how we all were raised as Catholics and attended church-run schools at various levels. Maybe that helps us better understand the issue, but exposing the facts, and hearing from those directly involved, is what matters.
"I don't have a dog in the fight," Wojtas told me. "I grew up Catholic and went to a Catholic college (Fordham University) but I'm not a practicing Catholic. I don't know anybody personally, outside of these stories, that it's (clergy abuse) happened to."
Virgen grew up Catholic in Los Angeles and attended Catholic schools from first grade through his freshman year of high school.
Similarly, I have no direct connection, though I've thought about how, when I attended Mercy High School in Middletown in the 1980s, it was a big deal when Bishop Daniel Reilly came to a student assembly. Reilly, who served as bishop of the Norwich Diocese from 1975 to 1994 and in the Diocese of Worcester from 1994 to 2004, was often a focus of Wojtas' reporting, though he never granted Wojtas an interview about his management of the abuse claims.
As we continue reporting, we hope to hear parishoners' thoughts. We'd also like to interview Diocese officials, who we want to believe are committed to paying fair restitution to the victims and moving forward, with transparency, for the benefit and safety of all.
"Cost of Silence" can be found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon, or wherever you find your podcasts. Make sure you follow or subscribe on your favorite app to get the latest episodes.
This is the opinion of Karen Florin, managing editor. Reach her at k.florin@theday.com or (860) 701-4217.
Editor's note: This version substitutes the correct word, "restitution," in the sentence about interviewing Diocese officials.
Help is available
In Connecticut, certified sexual assault crisis counselors can be reached any time at (888) 999-5545 (English), (888) 568-8332 (Spanish).
Email: info@endsexualviolencect.org
Website: http://endsexualviolencect.org
National Resource: https://www.rainn.org/about-national-sexual-assault-telephone-hotline