September 16, 2011 By Mark Haney, The Catholic Times, exerpt
Priesthood was the only way he could be a true servant of Christ

Fr. Jake Foglio wanted to get into radio. Instead he got into medicine.

He just wanted to be a “Christ-bearer,” but he wound up becoming a priest.

Now, even after 50 years as a priest, he does not consider it his “calling.”

“Fr. Jake loves God and His people,” said Fr. Joe Krupp, [former]director of campus ministry at MSU and St. John Student Center. “He doesn’t limit that love to people of the same world view or theological bend, he shares it freely with all. I have had the honor and privilege of serving Mass with him, of watching him serve and love God’s people. He is a gentle, loving soul who seeks to serve and give his all in whatever he does. I am blessed to know him.”

“Father Jake was a very beloved servant of Saint John’s Church & Student Center and the Michigan State University Community in East Lansing. He will be greatly missed. Please pray for the repose of his soul!” said Father Gordon Reigle, Pastor of Saint John Church & Student Center, October 6.

Fr. Jake talking about being at St. John
"I am convinced that ministry in a Christian university community must take us on to campus where people live, study and work.  This living contact affords me the chance to be with students so that I might appreciate ina more vivid way who they are, what they feel, and what they face."

    

MORE PHOTOS

An Amazing Life of Study, Service and Love

Born New Rochelle, New York, March 23, 1929
Ordained June 3, 1961, Lansing, Michigan
Died East Lansing, Michigan October 5, 2020
 
Education
1947, Regents Diploma, Albert Leonard High School, New Rochelle, N.Y.
1947-1948, Southwest Missouri State College, Springfield, MO.
1948-1951, B.A., Comm. Arts, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
1951-1953, Korean War, United States Marines
1954, Intensive Latin Studies, Loyola University, Chicago, IL
1955, Latin Studies, St. Jerome College, Kitcher, Ontario, Canada
1955-1957, B.A., Philosophy, Sacred Heart Seminary, Detroit, Michigan
1956-1961, Theology, St. John’s Provincial Seminary, Plymouth, Michigan
1981, Master of Divinity, St. John’s Provincial Seminary, Plymouth, Michigan
1985, Doctor of Ministry, St. Mary University, Baltimore, MD
1986 to 2020, Asst. Prof. Emeritus, MSU Dept. of Family Medicine
 
Assignments from 1961-2011, Diocese of Lansing
St. Augustine Parish, Kalamazoo, Michigan
St. Mary Parish, Jackson, Michigan
Sacred Heart Parish, Flint, Michigan
St. John Parish, Fenton, Michigan
St. John Student Parish, East Lansing, Michigan

Fr. Jake's Funeral 

In memory of Fr. Jake, please consider a donation to the
Fr. John (Jake) P. Foglio Legacy Fund
Ensuring a Catholic presence to serve students at MSU

Fr. Jake Foglio has been a beloved pillar of our St. John Community for many years, and now--in gratitude--we lift him up to the Lord and surround him with our prayers.  It's a safe bet that most adult Catholics in the area have a Fr. Jake story.  He had such an immense heart and love for the People of God!  Plus, he has ministered in so many capacities for so many years, he had a wide opportunity to share Christ with people - most especially the love and joy that come from knowing Him.

“Father Jake was a very beloved servant of Saint John’s Church & Student Center and the Michigan State University Community in East Lansing. He will be greatly missed. Please pray for the repose of his soul!”  Father Gordon Reigle

Fr. Jake, a native of New Rochelle, N. Y., was ordained by Bishop Joseph H. Albers for the Diocese of Lansing in 1961. He has served as Associate Pastor in Kalamazoo, Jackson, Fenton as well as St. John Student Parish, East Lansing.

Fr. Foglio earned Bachelor Degrees from Michigan State University and Sacred Heart Seminary, prior to his ordination. He earned a Master's Degree in Divinity from St. John Seminary, Plymouth MI in 1981 and a Doctor of Divinity Degree from St. Mary Seminary and University in Baltimore, MD in 1985.  

He has served on the Ethics and Social Impact Committee of the Transplant Policy Center, Ann Arbor, MI. He was involved in a pilot project in the Upper Peninsula which designed to bring together professionals from the medical and religious community to study the role of spirituality in medicine.  Father Jake served as an Assistant Professor in the MSU Department of Family Medicine from 1986 to 1997.  He joined the Department to assist with medical behavioral science teaching and counseling. His role expanded in the department as well as within the College of Human Medicine and, in 1993, Father Jake developed “Spirituality and Medicine,” a required Year II Humanities Block course.   His work was later honored by MSU the establishment of a Foglio Chair of Spirituality in the College of Arts and Letters in 2018. 

He has been a fixture at St. John Church & Student Center.  He came in 1967 and never really left.  In his active retirement, Fr Jake celebrated weekly and then a monthly mass.  By far, that was always his most uplifting day.   As he slowed down just a tad, his homilies stayed as just as long or even longer because he had notes full of important things he wanted to tell us — breaking open the Word. 

He also stayed active on the parish Matthew 25 Committee from it’s inception to just before his death.  This committee is tasked with supporting causes which serve dire needs here in the U.S. and across the world.  Each week, 5% of the offertory for St. John and St. Thomas is donated to charities selected by this committee.

Fr. Foglio also served as Associate Professor in the Department of Family Practice in the College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University.

Fr. Jake's second favorite thing was the MSU Football program.  During the 70s, he befriended MSU football coach Duffy Daugherty. He has been a part of MSU athletics for over 40 years.  He was a chaplain for the MSU football team and has worked with many coaches over the years.

His favorite opening hymn was All Are Welcome.  He said it expressed his feelings for our church.   And he often said he wanted that to be the opening song for his funeral.  

Fr Jake was loved and loved preaching love, love, and more love.

Help Continue His Service to the Catholic Spartan Community
by Donating to the Fr. Jake Legacy Endowment