Beloved is the best way to describe the Rev. James Ragnoni.
“You always knew he was in the room because others were gathered around him. He was happy being a priest. He loved his ministry. He loved his people and they loved him,” said the Rev. Michael B. Smith, pastor of Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church. “We need more like him. He will be greatly missed by his parishioners, the community and the diocese.”
The Rev. Ragnoni, 83, died Monday from complications of a stroke he suffered last week. The pastor emeritus of St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Parish in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood retired in 2013, after serving there as pastor for 39 years.
During his tenure, the Rev. Ragnoni (affectionately called Father Jim) became the face of St. Anthony’s. Both within the parish community and in the community at large, he was considered a fatherly presence.
Sandy DiFiore transferred his membership to St. Anthony’s 28 years ago because of the Rev. Ragnoni’s magnanimous personality.
“I would just watch how wherever you would go with him, people would come up to him to say hello. Kids would come up and hug him, senior citizens would, too. Politicians, movers and shakers, blue collar workers, ordinary people — it didn’t matter. They all loved him,” DiFiore said. “He was a friend to everybody. He treated everybody the same. He was just special.”
The Rev. David J. McCarthy who was ordained with Rev. Ragnoni in 1960 agrees that he had a special ability to connect with people.
“It didn’t matter who you were or where you came from, he knew how to talk to you and he knew how to respect you,” McCarthy said. “He was just a good man — sincere and kind.”
The Rev. Ragnoni, a Lorain native, was appointed in 1974 as pastor of St. Anthony, where he had been an associate pastor from 1960 to 1965. Between his two assignments at St. Anthony, he served as an associate pastor at Holy Redeemer in Cleveland and St. Mary of the Assumption in Mentor and as pastor at the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Cleveland.
Under the Rev. Ragnoni’s leadership, the St. Anthony congregation paid off the school mortgage and built a community center, which includes a gym, art room, library and computer lab. The community center was paid for on the day its construction was completed.
Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan, who was proud to call him his pastor, said the parish will be different without him.
“It’s hard to find someone who has spent that much time in a community. He was always quick with a smile and very easy to get to know. He had wide arms to accept and welcome everyone into the parish,” Horrigan said. “St. Anthony stands out in the community as a testament to his love. On a personal note, he was instrumental in reaffirming my faith in people and in doing the right thing.”
Sister Elizabeth Szilvasi, principal at St. Anthony School, said she is thankful for the support and dedication that the Rev. Ragnoni gave to the school and its students over the years.
“He loved the children of St. Anthony School and they loved him back,” said Szilvasi. “He was an outstanding man who loved God and loved serving his people. It’s a great loss for everyone who knew him.”
The Rev. Ragnoni’s nephew, Marty Martinez of Elyria, said his uncle considered the people of St. Anthony’s his family.
“He was a great man, a giving man. He was caring and respectful. It was all about family with him and the church was his extended family,” Martinez said. “I always thought of him as my uncle not as a priest, but as I got to see him in his parish and got to know the people there, I realized he was not only a father figure to his nieces and nephews, but to the people in his parish as well. It’s overwhelming to know how many people loved him because they knew he really cared about them.”
St. Anthony’s was established as an Italian parish in 1933. Although its membership is still predominantly Italian, the parish attracts people from various ethnicities. The Rev. Ragnoni, who served as chaplain of the Council of Italian American Societies and the Italian American Professional & Businessmen’s Club, was the third pastor in the history of the parish.
His successor, the Rev. Edward Burba, will miss the hearty laughter and camaraderie.
“He was a pleasure and a joy to live with. “I’ve never laughed so much in my 41 years as a priest,” Burba said. “He certainly loved being a priest because he loved people. He was always involved in the community beyond the parish because of his love for God’s people.”
The Rev. Ragnoni is survived by one brother, Carl, of Lorain, several sisters-in-law and many nieces and nephews.
A wake for the Rev. Ragnoni will begin with vespers at 3 p.m. Friday at St. Anthony’s, 83 Mosser Place, with visitation continuing until 9 p.m. Visitation will continue at 9 a.m. Saturday at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, 1905 Portage Trail, Cuyahoga Falls, where a funeral Mass is at 11 a.m. Hennessy Funeral Home is handling arrangements.
Colette Jenkins can be reached at 330-996-3731 or cjenkins@thebeaconjournal.com.