Father John Trinko in 1937

Father John Trinko served the Willard, Holy Family Catholic Church.  He also belonged to the prestigious Greenwood Commercial Club and was present for the Banquet held in honor of the unveiling of the Peace Monument given to the city by Ernest Durig in 1937.  He was also one of the area residents who had a bust made by the artist (above right). 

Responses

"Fr. Trinko was born Joseph (or possibly Jozef) Trinko (Trinco?) on March 17, 1907 to Michele (Mikele/Mike) and Marijana (Mariana/Mary) Trinko (Trinco) in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. He spent most of his later life in Lemont, Illinois, at the Franciscan monastery there. He died on October 10, 1969, on the way from Chicago to Lemont, when we "happened to be" visiting from South Dakota!"  Anne Trinko Cramer.

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Fr. Blase Chemazar prepared the folowing about

Father John Vianney Trinko, O. F. M. (1907 - 1969)

He was born in a home on 19th Street, in the Pilsen area of Chicago, on March 17, 1907, the son of Michael and Mary Trinko. He was baptized with the name of Joseph in St. Stephen's Church, Chicago.

He attended St. Paul and St. Stephen parochial schools, and he graduated from Quigley preparatory seminary, Chicago. He was accepted in the Franciscan order on August 29, 1927, and pursued philosophical studies in Green Bay, Wisconsin. After finishing there, he was sent to what is now Slovenia, and studied theology at the university of Ljubljana, in the city of the same name. Most Rev. Gregor Rozman ordained him to the priesthood on July 2, 1933.

Then he returned to the U. S. and celebrated his first mass at St. Stepehen's Chicago. In or around 1936 he was named as a pastor of Holy Family Church in Willard, Wisconsin.

From 1938 to 1942 he had returned to Slovenia, to serve in the Franciscan province there (which was and is the mother province of the Commissariat of the Holy Cross in the US.)

After war broke out in Europe, and Yugoslavia was invaded by the Axis forces, he returned to the US in 1942. Here he was stationed at various times at St. George, Chicago; St. Therese, Johnstown, PA; St. Cyril, New York City; and St. John Vianny, Highland Park, Michigan. He also spent some years at St. Mary' s Seminary, Lemont, IL.

Towards the end of his life, he had heart problems. Returning from his visit to his relatives in Chicago, he had a heart attack and was transported to McNeal Hospital in Berwin, IL., where he died. This was on October 10, 1969.

Funeral services were held in the chapel of St. Mary s, Lemont, and burial took place in St. Francis cemetery on the seminary grounds.

Sincerely,

Fr. Metod