St. Gerald Parish honors late Oak Lawn man
BY BOB RAKOW Correspondent October 11, 2011 9:46PM
Supporters gather at St. Gerald Parish in Oak Lawn after a hall there was named after Ralph Arnold. | Supplied photo
Updated: November 15, 2011 10:37AM
Jim Spoto recalls feeling like the new kid at school when he joined the choir at St. Gerald Parish in Oak Lawn.
But Spoto didn’t feel alone for long. Ralph Arnold, a veteran member of the choir, took Soto under his wing.
“He didn’t waste a second to break the ice and make me feel welcome,” Spoto said during an emotional dedication ceremony earlier this month for the parish’s new Ralph Arnold Hall.
More than 100 people attended the ceremony, which included a ribbon-cutting and reception.
The hall, built from what had been three classrooms, will be used for bingo and other parish activities.
Arnold, a lifelong member of St. Gerald, died suddenly in November at age 51. He was a member of the choir, St. Gerald’s Men’s Club, the Oak Lawn Raiders Social Athletic Club and was involved in numerous other events at St. Gerald.
“He was the one to lend a helping hand, a hug, a smile,” said Arnold’s wife, Dottie, a third-grade teacher at St. Gerald.
“He was a mentor and a dear friend to all of us in the choir,” said Spoto, who sang “Hail Mary, Gentle Woman,” one of Arnold’s favorite songs, during the dedication. “Ralph loved music, and he loved to sing.”
Spoto said Arnold encouraged him to become one of the choir’s cantors.
“Ralph had a kindness about him,” Spoto said. “His spirit will always be felt.”
Longtime friend Matt Egan, president of the men’s club, said Arnold had many friends throughout Oak Lawn and the parish community.
“He had a quality that made him immediately accepted and likeable,” Egan said. “He always had one eye on the detail and one eye on the big picture.”
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