Top photo caption: Thomas and Mary Ellen Vander Woude are pictured in an undated photo. It has been 18 years since Vander Woude, a Virginia Catholic, gave his life to save his son Joseph from drowning in a septic tank. Now, the Arlington Diocese is investigating his cause for canonization. OSV News photo/courtesy Vander Woude family
By Anna Donofrio / The Arlington Catholic Herald, OSV News
ARLINGTON, Va. OSV News — It’s been 18 years since Thomas Vander Woude gave his life to save his son Joseph from drowning in a septic tank. Now, the Arlington Diocese is investigating his cause for canonization.
Bishop Michael F. Burbidge released an edict Sept. 10, asking the faithful in the diocese to submit any information that should be considered as the diocese continues its investigation to Msgr. Paul deLadurantaye, chancellor of the diocese.
An edict is “the first public notification” that a cause for canonization is being considered, according to Msgr. deLadurantaye. The edict solicits information from those who knew Tom.
Any materials written by him will be “examined for theological accuracy, to make sure there’s nothing that contradicts the faith or moral teaching of the Church,” according to Msgr. deLadurantaye.
The edict marks a significant moment in diocesan history. “As far as I’m aware, it’s the first cause the diocese has actually petitioned for,” said Msgr. deLadurantaye.
For the last few years, the diocese has been investigating the Vander Woude case and moving the case through the processes of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints in Rome. The Tom Vander Woude Guild, a nonprofit promoting his cause for canonization, worked closely with the diocese during this time.
Offering one’s life for another is one path to canonization, which was introduced by Pope Francis in 2017. Martyrdom and living a life of heroic virtue are two other paths.
“What Tom Vander Woude did in sacrificing his own life to save his son Joseph, that would certainly fit under the conditions of the offering of one’s life,” Msgr. deLadurantaye told The Arlington Catholic Herald, the diocese’s news outlet.
In the Vander Woude case, Bishop Burbidge named the diocese as the petitioner. The diocese has named as postulator, Waldery Hilgeman, who will guide the cause through the dicastery in Rome. It also has named as vice postulator Art Bennett. Vice postulators are located in the area where the cause originates.
In collaboration with the Tom Vander Woude Guild, the diocese created a list of potential witnesses “who could give testimony to the life and the virtues and ultimately the offering of life of Tom Vander Woude,” Msgr. deLadurantaye said. “We noted that some people have reported what would seem to be favors, graces, miraculous events that occurred due to his intercession.” The favors will require further investigation, he added.
The diocese then sent the collected information, including a biographical report of Tom, to Hilgeman, the postulator, who issued a petition to Bishop Burbidge, “asking him to open the cause in a formal way,” and create an investigative tribunal. Bishop Burbidge has also requested that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops discuss the cause at their meeting this November.
For the Tom Vander Woude Guild, the edict is a groundbreaking moment after years of sharing Tom’s story
“This is a big step in the process,” said Chris Vander Woude, the fifth of Tom’s seven sons and a board member of the guild. He described his reaction to the edict as “a combination of excitement and humility at the same time.”
For Father Thomas P. Vander Woude, pastor of St. Mary of Sorrows Church in Fairfax and the oldest Vander Woude son, the development is “something surreal,” he said. “You read about these things. You read about families and saints, but to go through the process … it’s humbling.”
Born April 24, 1942, Tom Vander Woude grew up on a family farm near Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He married his high school sweetheart, Mary Ellen Earley, Dec. 26, 1964. Several months later, he embarked on a journey to become a U.S. Navy pilot and would go on to serve in the Vietnam War. He later worked as a commercial airline pilot.
The couple moved their family to Virginia in 1981 after researching and reading about the fledgling Seton School in Manassas.
“I was impressed by their strong Catholic faith and desire for their sons to attend a strong Catholic school,” said Anne Carroll, founder and executive director of the school. “We were small with unimpressive facilities, but Tom and Mary Ellen didn’t care about appearances.”
Tom immediately jumped into coaching, starting at Seton School and going on to serve as the athletics director and men’s basketball coach at Christendom College in Front Royal.
“He was not just a coach but also a mentor and helped to form virtue in the young men,” Carroll said.
After moving to Virginia, the family bought a 27-acre farm, raising horses and cows “hobby farm” fashion, according to Chris. “We baled hay in the summer to help pay for college education for the older brothers,” he said.
Chris said his dad practiced his faith in both ordinary and extraordinary ways. “We said the family rosary every night,” he said. “It was because of the faith of my mom and the resolve of my dad.” He described his father dropping to his knees in prayer, even “after a hard day of flying and baling hay.”
Tom also prayed a weekly Holy Hour — in the middle of the night.
“That is quite the example for sons to see (their) dad on his knees,” Chris said. His dad’s spiritual leadership extended into other areas of family life. “We weren’t allowed to play sports on Sunday because of my dad’s belief that that was God’s command,” he said.
Father Vander Woude said that his dad’s spiritual leadership continued even through his seminary days. “As I got closer to ordination, Dad and I had some really good heart-to-heart talks,” he said. “At the ordination, that was pretty emotional. … Dad and I couldn’t look at each other.”
Tom and Mary Ellen’s relationship inspired others, said Keith Henderson, chairman of the guild.
“They were a team like you wouldn’t believe — and such a strong, strong marriage,” he said.
The couple would go on to teach natural family planning to couples across the diocese.
In 1987, the family welcomed their youngest son, Joseph, who was born with Down syndrome.
“We all say he was the greatest gift to our family,” Chris said. He said his parents “demonstrated to the brothers that he was going to be treated just like anyone else, and we were going to love him unconditionally.”
As a baby, Joseph struggled to learn how to crawl. So, Tom spent hours with his son, crawling on all fours and showing him how to move his arms and legs in sync. “There’s two images burned into the minds of me and my brothers: him on his knees, and him on all fours crawling with Joseph,” Chris said.
In 2001, the Vander Woude family helped establish the newly founded parish community of Holy Trinity Church in Gainesville. Bennett, the vice postulator, recalled his tireless devotion to supporting the Holy Trinity Parish community in its infancy.
Every Sunday, parish volunteers set up a “sanctuary” for Mass at a nearby high school while the Church was being built. Tom volunteered every week, said Bennett, a former parishioner who also previously served as president and CEO of diocesan Catholic Charities.
“I always noticed he never complained, and he actually did most of the heavy lifting,” he added. “That’s my strongest memory of him: how he served with a smile.”
The day Tom died, Chris was at Mass at Christendom. “I got out, and my cellphone was blowing up,” he said. He called his brother Dan, who told him, “Chris, there’s been an accident. Dad passed away saving Joseph.”
While working with his dad to drain the family’s pool, Joseph fell through a lid covering the property’s septic tank. Without a second thought, Tom climbed into the tank and called for help. Pushing Joseph above the sewage to fresh air, he died in the suffocating methane gases.
Chris was thrown into shock after hearing the news. “For me, and for a lot of people who knew dad, he was never going to die,” he said. “He’s going to be 102 in a wheelchair.”
He began to have a rush of emotions and thoughts: “Joseph’s in trouble. I just lost Dad.” He said the family immediately drew to Joseph, in critical condition at the hospital, and his mom.
“She had just lost the love of her life,” he said. “He was the rock of our community, the rock of our family.”
The family received an outpouring of support from the local community after Tom’s death. Chris said many people began calling his dad a saint already. And while the Church has not canonized his dad yet, “he died saving Joseph, which tells me he’s in heaven,” Chris said. “I can personally believe that.”
Anna Donofrio is a staff writer at The Arlington Catholic Herald, news outlet of the Diocese of Arlington. This story was originally published by The Arlington Catholic Herald and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.
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