Born on Sept. 6, 1916, to Henry and Katherine (Schneider) Anderl, both of Austrian descent, Floyd Anderl attended school in his hometown of Chippewa Falls, graduating from McDonell Catholic High School in 1934. From 1932 to 1935 he served in the Wisconsin National Guard. For four and a half years after graduating from high school he worked as a stock-keeper at the Chippewa Falls Woolen Mill.
On Nov. 1, 1938, he left Wisconsin to enter the monastery at Collegeville. Beginning his novitiate in the summer of 1939, he professed vows as a Benedictine Brother to Abbot Alcuin Deutsch, OSB, on July 11, 1940. While he was still in the novitiate, Abbot Alcuin appointed him Abbey and University Tailor, a position he held for 41 years.
During his career as tailor, Brother John cut over 4,000 habits for Saint John's and four other monasteries. He was tailor and alterations director for the Army Air Force Cadets during World War II, 1942-43, when he pressed — at times with the help of cadet Jack Webb (of later TV fame) — some 300 uniforms each week. He helped Fr. Dominic Keller OSB for many years with set- and costume-making for campus drama productions.
Classes in typing and bookkeeping prepared him for part-time work in the business office. From 1941-46 Brother John played percussion in the Saint John's University Orchestra.
In 1942 he agreed to take charge of all abbey and parish funeral arrangements. He participated in enlarging the cemetery and moving many of the graves, including those of five deceased abbots, in 1956.
Following the massive fire in the carpenter shop on the sub-freezing and stormy night of Jan. 21, 1939, the Procurator began an upgrade of the Abbey fire-control equipment by purchasing a 1.5-ton Ford chassis and a 500-gallon pump. Brother John and a team of Brothers transformed the truck into a first-class piece of fire apparatus that was tested and approved by the National Board of Fire Underwriters.
Brother John and the other 22 monks in the fire department participated in a year of professional training by St. Paul firemen, thus supplementing their expertise with the new fire truck and their devotion to St. Florian, the patron of firefighters.
In 1952, Abbot Baldwin Dworschak OSB asked Brother John to succeed Brother Edward Zwak OSB as Fire Chief. In the first 10 years of being Fire Chief, campus insurance was reduced from Class 10 to Class 7, and the Abbey and University Security Department was founded. He provided instruction in rescue and resuscitation. During his tenure he garnered 17 awards for fire and rescue work from the State of Minnesota and national organizations including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Fire Service Award for Valor.
Brother John studied for and obtained an amateur ham radio license from the FCC in 1959 when he made his first transmission with the call letters, K¯VMW. He built his first transceiver himself. Ham radio became for him, "a very enjoyable hobby."
Brother John's knowledge of ham radio led to his becoming a Civil Air Patrol Warrant Officer for Electronics and Radio Communications. He received the Governor's Award for Fire Safety and the Stearns County Civil Defense Award for Fire Civil Defense. For 18 years he served as one of the County Directors for the Stearns County Civil Defense Program. In 1985, for outstanding work as Fire Chief and Chief of Rescue Work, he received the "Distinguished Leadership Award." He was made an Honorary Life Member of the Minnesota Fire Chiefs Association.
Brother John designed the first coded fire alarm system for the campus. Honeywell, Inc., Minneapolis, built the system, but the wiring and installation were done by local electricians. It required 14 miles of wire and seven miles of electrical conduit. He was also instrumental in building a modern firehouse in 1965.
Paul Ditzel profiled Brother John in an illustrated article, "Firemen in Cassocks" that appeared first in Catholic Digest and was reprinted in The Minnesota Fire Chief (May-June 1966).
Retiring from tailoring and fire chief duties in 1978, he spent more than 10 years assisting in parish work with his younger brother and fellow monk, Father Henry OSB. He assisted that year in parish work at St. John's Parish, Grand Marais, and Holy Rosary Parish, Grand Portage Indian Reservation. In 1979 he was invested as Lector and Eucharistic Minister by Bishop Paul Anderson of Duluth.
From November 1979 until December 1981 Brother John was assigned to Holy Name Parish, Medina. From January 1981 until November 1989 he assisted at Guardian Angels Parish, Brackett. In his parish work, Brother John taught CCD classes, preparing children for First Confession and Holy Communion; instructed altar servers; prepared liturgical celebrations; cared for altar linens; maintained buildings and grounds; and assisted at Communion of the Sick in private and retirement homes.
Never shy about expressing an opinion, Brother John patiently endured the results of an ancient fire injury that was aggravated by the strenuous steel work he did on the power house and the Abbey Church. He eventually required knee replacement surgery in 1992.
He was devoted to his brother, Father Henry. They were inseparable when both retired to Saint John's, occupying regular places at table in the refectory until 2002 when Brother John moved to a room near his brother in St. Raphael Hall, the Abbey's retirement center. According to the nursing staff, he was an excellent patient, cooperative and cheerful.
Not long after Brother John moved to St. Raphael Hall, it was discovered that he had developed inoperable chest cancer. He died in the early afternoon on New Year's Day, 2003. It is fitting that he died on a day honoring Mary for he had a lifelong devotion to the Mother of God.
He is survived by: his brother, Fr. Henry Anderl, OSB; and his youngest sister, Mrs. Helen Zutter of Chippewa Falls.
He was preceded in death by: his siblings, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Stephen Anderl, Mr. Arnold Anderl and Mother Mary Gabriel, OP.
The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Brother John at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4 in Saint John's Abbey Church and also at 12 noon on Monday, Jan. 6 at St. Charles Church in Chippewa Falls.
On Nov. 1, 1938, he left Wisconsin to enter the monastery at Collegeville. Beginning his novitiate in the summer of 1939, he professed vows as a Benedictine Brother to Abbot Alcuin Deutsch, OSB, on July 11, 1940. While he was still in the novitiate, Abbot Alcuin appointed him Abbey and University Tailor, a position he held for 41 years.
During his career as tailor, Brother John cut over 4,000 habits for Saint John's and four other monasteries. He was tailor and alterations director for the Army Air Force Cadets during World War II, 1942-43, when he pressed — at times with the help of cadet Jack Webb (of later TV fame) — some 300 uniforms each week. He helped Fr. Dominic Keller OSB for many years with set- and costume-making for campus drama productions.
Classes in typing and bookkeeping prepared him for part-time work in the business office. From 1941-46 Brother John played percussion in the Saint John's University Orchestra.
In 1942 he agreed to take charge of all abbey and parish funeral arrangements. He participated in enlarging the cemetery and moving many of the graves, including those of five deceased abbots, in 1956.
Following the massive fire in the carpenter shop on the sub-freezing and stormy night of Jan. 21, 1939, the Procurator began an upgrade of the Abbey fire-control equipment by purchasing a 1.5-ton Ford chassis and a 500-gallon pump. Brother John and a team of Brothers transformed the truck into a first-class piece of fire apparatus that was tested and approved by the National Board of Fire Underwriters.
Brother John and the other 22 monks in the fire department participated in a year of professional training by St. Paul firemen, thus supplementing their expertise with the new fire truck and their devotion to St. Florian, the patron of firefighters.
In 1952, Abbot Baldwin Dworschak OSB asked Brother John to succeed Brother Edward Zwak OSB as Fire Chief. In the first 10 years of being Fire Chief, campus insurance was reduced from Class 10 to Class 7, and the Abbey and University Security Department was founded. He provided instruction in rescue and resuscitation. During his tenure he garnered 17 awards for fire and rescue work from the State of Minnesota and national organizations including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Fire Service Award for Valor.
Brother John studied for and obtained an amateur ham radio license from the FCC in 1959 when he made his first transmission with the call letters, K¯VMW. He built his first transceiver himself. Ham radio became for him, "a very enjoyable hobby."
Brother John's knowledge of ham radio led to his becoming a Civil Air Patrol Warrant Officer for Electronics and Radio Communications. He received the Governor's Award for Fire Safety and the Stearns County Civil Defense Award for Fire Civil Defense. For 18 years he served as one of the County Directors for the Stearns County Civil Defense Program. In 1985, for outstanding work as Fire Chief and Chief of Rescue Work, he received the "Distinguished Leadership Award." He was made an Honorary Life Member of the Minnesota Fire Chiefs Association.
Brother John designed the first coded fire alarm system for the campus. Honeywell, Inc., Minneapolis, built the system, but the wiring and installation were done by local electricians. It required 14 miles of wire and seven miles of electrical conduit. He was also instrumental in building a modern firehouse in 1965.
Paul Ditzel profiled Brother John in an illustrated article, "Firemen in Cassocks" that appeared first in Catholic Digest and was reprinted in The Minnesota Fire Chief (May-June 1966).
Retiring from tailoring and fire chief duties in 1978, he spent more than 10 years assisting in parish work with his younger brother and fellow monk, Father Henry OSB. He assisted that year in parish work at St. John's Parish, Grand Marais, and Holy Rosary Parish, Grand Portage Indian Reservation. In 1979 he was invested as Lector and Eucharistic Minister by Bishop Paul Anderson of Duluth.
From November 1979 until December 1981 Brother John was assigned to Holy Name Parish, Medina. From January 1981 until November 1989 he assisted at Guardian Angels Parish, Brackett. In his parish work, Brother John taught CCD classes, preparing children for First Confession and Holy Communion; instructed altar servers; prepared liturgical celebrations; cared for altar linens; maintained buildings and grounds; and assisted at Communion of the Sick in private and retirement homes.
Never shy about expressing an opinion, Brother John patiently endured the results of an ancient fire injury that was aggravated by the strenuous steel work he did on the power house and the Abbey Church. He eventually required knee replacement surgery in 1992.
He was devoted to his brother, Father Henry. They were inseparable when both retired to Saint John's, occupying regular places at table in the refectory until 2002 when Brother John moved to a room near his brother in St. Raphael Hall, the Abbey's retirement center. According to the nursing staff, he was an excellent patient, cooperative and cheerful.
Not long after Brother John moved to St. Raphael Hall, it was discovered that he had developed inoperable chest cancer. He died in the early afternoon on New Year's Day, 2003. It is fitting that he died on a day honoring Mary for he had a lifelong devotion to the Mother of God.
He is survived by: his brother, Fr. Henry Anderl, OSB; and his youngest sister, Mrs. Helen Zutter of Chippewa Falls.
He was preceded in death by: his siblings, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Stephen Anderl, Mr. Arnold Anderl and Mother Mary Gabriel, OP.
The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Brother John at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4 in Saint John's Abbey Church and also at 12 noon on Monday, Jan. 6 at St. Charles Church in Chippewa Falls.
Born on Sept. 6, 1916, to Henry and Katherine (Schneider) Anderl, both of Austrian descent, Floyd Anderl attended school in his hometown of Chippewa Falls, graduating from McDonell Catholic High School in 1934. From 1932 to 1935 he served in the Wisconsin National Guard. For four and a half years after graduating from high school he worked as a stock-keeper at the Chippewa Falls Woolen Mill.
On Nov. 1, 1938, he left Wisconsin to enter the monastery at Collegeville. Beginning his novitiate in the summer of 1939, he professed vows as a Benedictine Brother to Abbot Alcuin Deutsch, OSB, on July 11, 1940. While he was still in the novitiate, Abbot Alcuin appointed him Abbey and University Tailor, a position he held for 41 years.
During his career as tailor, Brother John cut over 4,000 habits for Saint John's and four other monasteries. He was tailor and alterations director for the Army Air Force Cadets during World War II, 1942-43, when he pressed — at times with the help of cadet Jack Webb (of later TV fame) — some 300 uniforms each week. He helped Fr. Dominic Keller OSB for many years with set- and costume-making for campus drama productions.
Classes in typing and bookkeeping prepared him for part-time work in the business office. From 1941-46 Brother John played percussion in the Saint John's University Orchestra.
In 1942 he agreed to take charge of all abbey and parish funeral arrangements. He participated in enlarging the cemetery and moving many of the graves, including those of five deceased abbots, in 1956.
Following the massive fire in the carpenter shop on the sub-freezing and stormy night of Jan. 21, 1939, the Procurator began an upgrade of the Abbey fire-control equipment by purchasing a 1.5-ton Ford chassis and a 500-gallon pump. Brother John and a team of Brothers transformed the truck into a first-class piece of fire apparatus that was tested and approved by the National Board of Fire Underwriters.
Brother John and the other 22 monks in the fire department participated in a year of professional training by St. Paul firemen, thus supplementing their expertise with the new fire truck and their devotion to St. Florian, the patron of firefighters.
In 1952, Abbot Baldwin Dworschak OSB asked Brother John to succeed Brother Edward Zwak OSB as Fire Chief. In the first 10 years of being Fire Chief, campus insurance was reduced from Class 10 to Class 7, and the Abbey and University Security Department was founded. He provided instruction in rescue and resuscitation. During his tenure he garnered 17 awards for fire and rescue work from the State of Minnesota and national organizations including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Fire Service Award for Valor.
Brother John studied for and obtained an amateur ham radio license from the FCC in 1959 when he made his first transmission with the call letters, K¯VMW. He built his first transceiver himself. Ham radio became for him, "a very enjoyable hobby."
Brother John's knowledge of ham radio led to his becoming a Civil Air Patrol Warrant Officer for Electronics and Radio Communications. He received the Governor's Award for Fire Safety and the Stearns County Civil Defense Award for Fire Civil Defense. For 18 years he served as one of the County Directors for the Stearns County Civil Defense Program. In 1985, for outstanding work as Fire Chief and Chief of Rescue Work, he received the "Distinguished Leadership Award." He was made an Honorary Life Member of the Minnesota Fire Chiefs Association.
Brother John designed the first coded fire alarm system for the campus. Honeywell, Inc., Minneapolis, built the system, but the wiring and installation were done by local electricians. It required 14 miles of wire and seven miles of electrical conduit. He was also instrumental in building a modern firehouse in 1965.
Paul Ditzel profiled Brother John in an illustrated article, "Firemen in Cassocks" that appeared first in Catholic Digest and was reprinted in The Minnesota Fire Chief (May-June 1966).
Retiring from tailoring and fire chief duties in 1978, he spent more than 10 years assisting in parish work with his younger brother and fellow monk, Father Henry OSB. He assisted that year in parish work at St. John's Parish, Grand Marais, and Holy Rosary Parish, Grand Portage Indian Reservation. In 1979 he was invested as Lector and Eucharistic Minister by Bishop Paul Anderson of Duluth.
From November 1979 until December 1981 Brother John was assigned to Holy Name Parish, Medina. From January 1981 until November 1989 he assisted at Guardian Angels Parish, Brackett. In his parish work, Brother John taught CCD classes, preparing children for First Confession and Holy Communion; instructed altar servers; prepared liturgical celebrations; cared for altar linens; maintained buildings and grounds; and assisted at Communion of the Sick in private and retirement homes.
Never shy about expressing an opinion, Brother John patiently endured the results of an ancient fire injury that was aggravated by the strenuous steel work he did on the power house and the Abbey Church. He eventually required knee replacement surgery in 1992.
He was devoted to his brother, Father Henry. They were inseparable when both retired to Saint John's, occupying regular places at table in the refectory until 2002 when Brother John moved to a room near his brother in St. Raphael Hall, the Abbey's retirement center. According to the nursing staff, he was an excellent patient, cooperative and cheerful.
Not long after Brother John moved to St. Raphael Hall, it was discovered that he had developed inoperable chest cancer. He died in the early afternoon on New Year's Day, 2003. It is fitting that he died on a day honoring Mary for he had a lifelong devotion to the Mother of God.
He is survived by: his brother, Fr. Henry Anderl, OSB; and his youngest sister, Mrs. Helen Zutter of Chippewa Falls.
He was preceded in death by: his siblings, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Stephen Anderl, Mr. Arnold Anderl and Mother Mary Gabriel, OP.
The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Brother John at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4 in Saint John's Abbey Church and also at 12 noon on Monday, Jan. 6 at St. Charles Church in Chippewa Falls.
On Nov. 1, 1938, he left Wisconsin to enter the monastery at Collegeville. Beginning his novitiate in the summer of 1939, he professed vows as a Benedictine Brother to Abbot Alcuin Deutsch, OSB, on July 11, 1940. While he was still in the novitiate, Abbot Alcuin appointed him Abbey and University Tailor, a position he held for 41 years.
During his career as tailor, Brother John cut over 4,000 habits for Saint John's and four other monasteries. He was tailor and alterations director for the Army Air Force Cadets during World War II, 1942-43, when he pressed — at times with the help of cadet Jack Webb (of later TV fame) — some 300 uniforms each week. He helped Fr. Dominic Keller OSB for many years with set- and costume-making for campus drama productions.
Classes in typing and bookkeeping prepared him for part-time work in the business office. From 1941-46 Brother John played percussion in the Saint John's University Orchestra.
In 1942 he agreed to take charge of all abbey and parish funeral arrangements. He participated in enlarging the cemetery and moving many of the graves, including those of five deceased abbots, in 1956.
Following the massive fire in the carpenter shop on the sub-freezing and stormy night of Jan. 21, 1939, the Procurator began an upgrade of the Abbey fire-control equipment by purchasing a 1.5-ton Ford chassis and a 500-gallon pump. Brother John and a team of Brothers transformed the truck into a first-class piece of fire apparatus that was tested and approved by the National Board of Fire Underwriters.
Brother John and the other 22 monks in the fire department participated in a year of professional training by St. Paul firemen, thus supplementing their expertise with the new fire truck and their devotion to St. Florian, the patron of firefighters.
In 1952, Abbot Baldwin Dworschak OSB asked Brother John to succeed Brother Edward Zwak OSB as Fire Chief. In the first 10 years of being Fire Chief, campus insurance was reduced from Class 10 to Class 7, and the Abbey and University Security Department was founded. He provided instruction in rescue and resuscitation. During his tenure he garnered 17 awards for fire and rescue work from the State of Minnesota and national organizations including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Fire Service Award for Valor.
Brother John studied for and obtained an amateur ham radio license from the FCC in 1959 when he made his first transmission with the call letters, K¯VMW. He built his first transceiver himself. Ham radio became for him, "a very enjoyable hobby."
Brother John's knowledge of ham radio led to his becoming a Civil Air Patrol Warrant Officer for Electronics and Radio Communications. He received the Governor's Award for Fire Safety and the Stearns County Civil Defense Award for Fire Civil Defense. For 18 years he served as one of the County Directors for the Stearns County Civil Defense Program. In 1985, for outstanding work as Fire Chief and Chief of Rescue Work, he received the "Distinguished Leadership Award." He was made an Honorary Life Member of the Minnesota Fire Chiefs Association.
Brother John designed the first coded fire alarm system for the campus. Honeywell, Inc., Minneapolis, built the system, but the wiring and installation were done by local electricians. It required 14 miles of wire and seven miles of electrical conduit. He was also instrumental in building a modern firehouse in 1965.
Paul Ditzel profiled Brother John in an illustrated article, "Firemen in Cassocks" that appeared first in Catholic Digest and was reprinted in The Minnesota Fire Chief (May-June 1966).
Retiring from tailoring and fire chief duties in 1978, he spent more than 10 years assisting in parish work with his younger brother and fellow monk, Father Henry OSB. He assisted that year in parish work at St. John's Parish, Grand Marais, and Holy Rosary Parish, Grand Portage Indian Reservation. In 1979 he was invested as Lector and Eucharistic Minister by Bishop Paul Anderson of Duluth.
From November 1979 until December 1981 Brother John was assigned to Holy Name Parish, Medina. From January 1981 until November 1989 he assisted at Guardian Angels Parish, Brackett. In his parish work, Brother John taught CCD classes, preparing children for First Confession and Holy Communion; instructed altar servers; prepared liturgical celebrations; cared for altar linens; maintained buildings and grounds; and assisted at Communion of the Sick in private and retirement homes.
Never shy about expressing an opinion, Brother John patiently endured the results of an ancient fire injury that was aggravated by the strenuous steel work he did on the power house and the Abbey Church. He eventually required knee replacement surgery in 1992.
He was devoted to his brother, Father Henry. They were inseparable when both retired to Saint John's, occupying regular places at table in the refectory until 2002 when Brother John moved to a room near his brother in St. Raphael Hall, the Abbey's retirement center. According to the nursing staff, he was an excellent patient, cooperative and cheerful.
Not long after Brother John moved to St. Raphael Hall, it was discovered that he had developed inoperable chest cancer. He died in the early afternoon on New Year's Day, 2003. It is fitting that he died on a day honoring Mary for he had a lifelong devotion to the Mother of God.
He is survived by: his brother, Fr. Henry Anderl, OSB; and his youngest sister, Mrs. Helen Zutter of Chippewa Falls.
He was preceded in death by: his siblings, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Stephen Anderl, Mr. Arnold Anderl and Mother Mary Gabriel, OP.
The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Brother John at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4 in Saint John's Abbey Church and also at 12 noon on Monday, Jan. 6 at St. Charles Church in Chippewa Falls.
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