Meet Br. Robert Smith

Sr. VP for Presidential Initiatives and Special Advisor to the President
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

I went to a “Brothers’ High School,” Cretin in St. Paul, MN, and there were perhaps 30 Brothers there; half over 40 or so and half under. Among the younger Brothers, two of them were my hockey coaches, one of whom was my Sophomore English teacher; another young Brother taught Freshman Religion. All in all, they were young, energetic, fun, down to earth; I was very involved with student government and a couple of the young Brothers were the moderators. Interestingly, just about all of those “young Brothers” left the Institute within a few years….but, for sure, they helped plant the seed of my own vocation.

Brother Damian Steger is a special Brother to me. He never left Winona since the first day of his Novitiate. He worked at Saint Mary’s Press his entire ministry, in several roles, including the final 27 years as President/CEO. I got to know him when I entered the Brothers at Saint Mary’s, living in community with him during my own formation, and asked him to serve as my “Sponsor” when I entered the Congregation. He was low-key, level-headed, wise, spiritual, enjoyed sports and the outdoors, never (well, hardly ever) took life too seriously. We became very good friends, I spent five years working full time at the Press, and we annually (sometimes twice annually!) vacationed together.

When I was in college at Saint Mary’s, Brother Charlies Severin gave a talk to the “Candidates” (as we were called them) and he said something like “I could land anywhere on the globe, and there would be a need I could respond to” and, later in the same evening, after being asked “what if you were the last Brother in Winona and needed help?” he replied: “I would go down to the hospital, or social services, and present myself and tell them I have served young people for 50 years…so please take care of me…”  or something like that. His spirit of service, his selfless attitude, and his trust in Providence were both moving and memorable.

During my early years of teaching theology at Saint Mary’s, there was a faculty-staff intramural ice hockey team for several years. When I was student at Saint Mary’s I also played on such an intramural team—with “Crazy Brother George” Paul, as he was called, who was President at the time. I do not think we ever won a game – playing against guys who played for their high schools just a year or two before – but it was great fun.

One wish for the next generation? Impossible! Peace. Racial justice. Economic equality. A world in which creation is reverenced and protected. One gift? Impossible! Self-worth. A passion for justice and equity. A belief in and celebration of the Divine. Opportunities to know, learn from, and celebrate differences in people, cultures, traditions… 

The support of the Brothers, charitable and prayerful, reflects a love of and gratitude for the Brothers and our lives—past, present, and future. It reflects a commitment that those who know us, many of whom have benefited from a Lasallian education, desire to support us in our aging, in our health, and sunset years of our lives.