Ten years ago yesterday, in a parish about ten minutes from my house, a Catholic priest was murdered in his rectory. The victim of a botched robbery, Msgr. Thomas Wells was a beloved pastor and a dedicated priest. One of Msgr. Wells’ greatest gifts, however, was encouraging priestly vocations; in fact, so many men became priests because of his influence that they came to be known as the “Wells Guys ^[1].” I have personally met many of these young priests, and they are all dynamic, orthodox priests who love Christ, love the Church, and love Msgr. Wells.

One of the men who came under his influence was his own nephew ^[2], who will be ordained to the priesthood this month:

It has been ten years since the murder of Father Tom Wells, a beloved priest from a huge Catholic family.

Wells, then pastor of Mother Seton Parish in Germantown, was found stabbed to death in the rectory, the result of a robbery-gone-bad.

‘I remember the first thing I thought was, it must’ve been a car accident,” said Dave Wells, Father Tom’s newphew. “I mean, who kills a priest?!”

Robert Lucas was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 42 years in prison.

Thousands turned out for Wells’ funeral, a testament to the many lives touched by one priest. It was a turning point for Dave, then a junior in high school.

“It really struck me at that point, the power of the priesthood, lived well,” Wells said. “It popped in my head, maybe I should think about this–maybe God’s calling me to follow in Tom’s footsteps, in a way, by being a priest.”

And on June 19, the now 27-year-old Dave Wells will be ordained a priest. His first vestment: a gift, in loving memory of his uncle, who was ordained in 1971.

“I think there’s candy in this one, let’s see!” Wells joked.

To his family, Dave’s just a regular guy.

“He didn’t wear a halo over his head,” said Judy Wells, the Dave’s mother. “I mean, I didn’t have a clue. He was just a normal kid who loved baseball.”

And this soon-to-be priest believes the uncle who inspired him–msgr wells–is still guiding him, from above:

“I can see him laughing right now, you know, just with joy,” Dave said. “I do think he’s interceding for me, that he’s kind of with me in a special way.”

One of the most important things to remember about the Christian Faith is that death is not the end of our lives – it is only the means to our final destination. And after death, our work here on earth may not be done, as can be seen by the intercession of the saints. It appears that Msgr. Wells has continued to be busy encouraging vocations since his untimely death ten years ago.

May the souls of the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.