The ministry of the Franciscan Friars of Holy Name Province began at The Catholic Center in September 1957, with the arrival of Fr. Cronan Kelly, O.F.M., as chaplain of the Newman Club of the University of Georgia. The Franciscans were invited to take over the Newman Club by Bishop Francis Hyland.
After serving the students for four years, Fr. Kelly was followed in 1961 by Fr. T.T. McNulty, O.F.M., who served for one year before moving to Atlanta to serve the students of Georgia Tech and Emory. Fr. Christian Malone, O.F.M., came to Athens in 1962 and was the chaplain when Atlanta Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan approved plans to build a new Catholic chapel and center on the property.
On March 10, 1966, Archbishop Hallinan, Fr. Christian Malone, O.F.M., Coach Vince Dooley, and a host of others were on hand to celebrate the groundbreaking for the new chapel and center. Funding for the building project was raised through a capital campaign of the Archdiocese of North Georgia with donations from the Franciscan Friars and Mr. and Mrs. Hughes Spalding of Atlanta. The Spaldings were family members of Bishop John Lancaster Spalding, for whom the chapel was named. Bishop Spalding was a 19th century pioneer bishop of the U.S. and a strong advocate for higher education.
The dedication of the Newman Center and Spalding Chapel was held on February 12, 1967. After a blessing of the center, Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Bernardin of Atlanta (later an American Cardinal of the Catholic Church and Archbishop of Chicago), Archbishop Francis Hyland of Atlanta, and University of Georgia President O.C. Aderhold gave a few remarks.
Following the dedication at the center, the chapel was blessed by Archbishop Hallinan. Bishop Bernardin, Fr. Malone (chaplain), Fr. John Mulroy, Fr. Walter Donovan (later Monsignor Donovan, for whom the local high school is named), Fr. Cronan Kelly (former chaplain), and Fr. Finian F. Kerwin, Provincial of the Franciscan Fathers of Holy Name Province in New York, concelebrated Mass. Thus, the commitment of the Franciscan Friars to The Catholic Center at the University of Georgia was confirmed by the dedication of the new chapel and center in 1967.
The Franciscans served at the Catholic Center until 2020, when they were relocated, and the Catholic Center became a Diocesan run Church. We are grateful for all the Friars who served at the Catholic Center. Their names can all be found below:
Fr. Cronan Kelly, Fr. T. T. McNulty, Fr. Christian Malone, Fr. Neil Connell, Fr. Joe Holohan, Fr. Bob Menard, Fr. Steven Pavignano, Fr. Kevin Tortorelli, Fr. Gerald Dolan, Fr. Jack McDowell, Fr. David Hyman, Fr. Tom Vigliotta, Fr. John Coughlin, Fr. Scott Brookbank, Fr. Bill McConville, Fr. Francis Critch, Fr. Casey Cole