In Memory of Rev. Valentine Peter ’60, C’66

The College community was saddened to learn of the death of alumnus, friend, and benefactor Reverend Valentine Peter ’60, C’66. “Fr. Val” as he was affectionately known to many, died Tuesday, June 30, 2020, at the age of 85 at a retirement home in Nebraska.

Born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1934, Fr. Val attended the Pontifical North American College where he was a member of the class of 1960. He earned doctoral degrees in canon law and theology from the Gregorian University, the Angelicum, and Lateran University. After returning to the United States, he taught at the Saint John College Seminary at Elkhorn, College of Saint Mary, and Creighton University. From 1985 to 2005, he served as the Executive Director of the well-known Boys Town (later expanded and known as Girls and Boys Town), an orphanage for abused, abandoned, and neglected children. During his tenure, over 43,000 children were helped at 19 sites in 15 states around the country.

The Carl J. Peter Chair of Homiletics
One of four children, Fr. Val’s older brother, Rev. Carl J. Peter, also attended the North American College from 1951-58 and came back to the College in 1960 to serve as Assistant Vice-Rector. While serving as Assistant Vice-Rector, Fr. Peter completed two doctorates, one at the Gregorian University and one at the Angelicum. Following his tenure as Assistant Vice-Rector, Fr. Carl Peter returned to the United States where he became a long-time professor of theology at The Catholic University of America. He died of a massive heart attack in 1991 and to honor his memory, the Peter family established the Carl J. Peter Chair of Homiletics. Fr. Carl recognized a poverty of homiletics preparation in seminaries and often called attention to the need for proper training in homiletics.

Fr. Randy Soto-DeJesus, C’96, C’02 (Diocese of San Jose in Costa Rica) is the current Carl J. Peter Chair of Homiletics. Past faculty members who have held the position include Rev. John Geary McDonald, ’07, Rev. James Quigley, OP, Rev. Msgr. Jeffrey D. Burrill, ’98, Rev. Vincent Tobin, OSB, and Rev. Paul A. Holmes, ‘81.

Upon the establishment of the Chair, an annual lecture series was started to draw attention to the art of preaching. The Annual Carl J. Peter Lecture at the College has been delivered by many distinguished professors, priests, and prelates, among them Rev. Nicolas Steeves, SJ; Most Rev. Andrew H. Cozzens C’02; Most Rev. Bernard Hebda ’89; Most Rev. Charles Jason Gordon; Most Rev. J. Augustine DiNoia, OP; Rev. Msgr. Stephen Rossetti; Rev. Nicanor Austriaco, OP; Cardinal Daniel DiNardo ’76; Dr. Elizabeth Lev; Most Rev. Robert E. Barron; Cardinal Donald Wuerl ’67; Most Rev. Wilton D. Gregory C’80; Cardinal Timothy Dolan ’76; Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, OSB; Rev. Donald Senior, CP; Rt. Rev. Lambert Reilly, OSB; Cardinal Edwin F. O’Brien ’76; and Rev. Paul A. Holmes ’81, C’88.

The Val J. Peter Scholars
Fr. Val was committed throughout his priestly ministry to helping those less fortunate, especially youth. In 2007, Fr. Val established the Val J. Peter Scholars program to provide scholarships for seminarians from dioceses that could not otherwise financially afford to send a student to Rome. Candidates are proposed by the Rector based on a variety of criteria and approved by the College Board of Governors and Fr. Val personally. Over 30 seminarians have been able to attend the College thanks to the generosity of this program.

A Lasting Legacy
While we mourn the loss of Fr. Val, we celebrate the incredible impact he had on the College while living, and the enduring legacy he leaves behind. Fr. Val gave a life of service and his self-made fortune to others, for the betterment of the Church and those She serves. In one of our last written communications from Fr. Val, he ended his letter with the following: “As I come to the close of my life, I pray Simeon’s prayer: ‘Now Lord, you may dismiss your servant in peace.’” Amen.

Stay up to date with the latest College news by joining our email list.