Fr. Eugene L. Watrin, S.J.

The Diplomat on a Bicycle

Fr. Eugene L. Watrin, S.J.

The young scholastic was very upset. He had been promised that the administrator of the house would pick him up by car while going to Godavari for the Christmas gathering. It was already 6:30 in the evening, and there was no sign of any car. After waiting impatiently till 7 o’clock, he called a taxi and reached Godavari.

There he met the administrator and shouted at him, “Look. I am very upset with you. I could have come with the rector on the bike. Since it was very cold and I had to travel for fourteen kilometers, I wanted you to pick me up by car. But what have you done? Have you no concern for people waiting? You … ”

While they were still talking an elderly person of about 78, wearing a thermocal helmet passed them by on a “cycle” with a red light blinking behind. They both looked at the person and immediately recognized the figure. The administrator looked at the scholastic and smiled. The young scholastic of 22 understood the message, put his head down, and walked inside without saying anything more. The administrator said to himself, “Well done, Fr. Watrin and thank you.”

Well, this was a few years back. Still Fr. Eugene L. Watrin the senior-most priest in our region, is a real challenge and eye opener to most of the youngsters around here. A great man indeed! But there is no big fuzz about him. He may have many meetings to attend, many places to visit, and many diplomats to talk to. He does it all by traveling on his favourite bicycle. And can you imagine? Once he was leading a trek for our pre-novices. He got to the top of the mountain three hours before the boys!

Fr. Eugene L. Watrin was born on July 28, 1920, in the medium-size city of Dayton, Ohio, USA. His birthplace is famous for two things: the Bosnia Peace Accord which was signed a few years ago and for the Wright Brothers who invented the airplane. He is the second of five children. He had one elder brother, now deceased, and three younger sisters, the youngest one deceased. He began his academic life by attending St. Mary’s Grammar School in the parish where he was baptized and grew up. He did eight years of schooling there. The peculiarity of this school was that all the teachers were nuns. As a young boy he was a regular Mass server and used to take part in many parish activities.

After finishing St. Mary’s Grammar School, he went to Chaminade High School, which was also in Dayton. The school was named after Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, the founder of the Marianist Brothers. Here too, interestingly, all his teachers except one were Marianist Brothers. He studied there for four years. In the meanwhile he had already conceived the thought of becoming a priest, and preferably a missionary.

Fr. Watrin used to hear from Jesuit family friends who were missionaries, and he was inspired to be a missionary. But the pastor of his parish suggested to him to join the Diocesan Seminary and warned him that if he joined the Jesuits, he would end up teaching in some high schools in America. However, he decided to apply to the Jesuits, and so he did.

Since he had not lived with the Jesuits, they sent him to Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio, for a year to see how Jesuits operate. Then he was admitted for two years of novitiate at Milford, Ohio. In the same building he had his two years of juniorate too.

Meanwhile, their novitiate had bought a big farm. And in between his juniorate and philosophy studies, Fr. Watrin helped one of the Brothers in putting up buildings there. This was also the time when the USA was involved in World War II, and everyone except the unfit had to serve in the army. Though the priests and the seminarians were exempted, their co-workers had no choice. So there was no one to work in the kitchen. Since theirs was a huge community, scholastics had to work in the kitchen for a full day of cooking and washing pots and pans. Besides other household chores, butchering pigs and putting them in the fridge became one of his regular activities.

At that time, the novices were asked if they were interested in serving overseas in the missions. In those days there were three conditions to become a missionary – go when you were sent, go where you were sent, and it was a one way ticket!

Fr. Watrin loves the poor kids of Nepal.

Some were sent after juniorate and some after philosophy. Young Fr. Watrin always wanted to become a missionary. Originally he was designated to go to Japan. Later they found that the Church’s needs were greater in India. So, Superiors decided to send him to India after his philosophy. By this time he had also completed his Litt. B. at Xavier University and M.A. in English at Loyola University of Chicago.

After philosophy, he joined a group of six Jesuits, including him, who would go to India in September. Though the war had ended, there were no ships at that time. so they couldn’t sail till December 1946. Once they started, the journey wasn’t all that easy. There was a big storm in the Pacific Ocean, and the ship they were in almost overturned. However, after thirty days they arrived in Bombay and stayed at St. Mary High School.

In early January, 1947, they were sent to Patna. They were five scholastics and a priest, Fr. Frank Martinsek, who was later killed at Mokama by dacoits. In Patna they were sent to Chuhari to learn Hindi. A young boy who had failed in his S.L.C. was their teacher. They didn’t learn much Hindi. Besides, life was tough there. They had no electricity nor running water. North Bihar was hot and humid in the summer. Fr. Watrin was covered from head to foot with prickly heat, and he suffered from dysentery almost the whole year.

On August 15, 1947, they celebrated Indian Independence in Chuhari. Fr. Watrin remembers that Independence didn’t make any difference in lives of the people there, except for traveling in trains. The trains became overcrowded after independence, and most of the people traveled without tickets. The ticket checkers often had to turn away from the people with the answer, “What ticket? We don’t need tickets any more, now we have got independence.”

In January, the following year, he was sent to Jaipur as a teacher and prefect in St. Xavier’s School and hostel. He taught there for two years. Then he went to Pune for 1st year theology. After completing one year, he was sent to St. Mary’s Kurseong for the rest of his studies, and he was ordained a priest there in 1952. After ordination he remained in India for a few years. He was the vice principal at St. Xavier’s, Patna, during the year 1954.

Meanwhile, Fr. Moran, S. J. founded the Nepal Jesuit Society and St. Xavier’s Godavari School was begun in 1951. As it had been planned earlier, Fr. Watrin was ready now to be sent to Nepal.

Fr. Watrin arrived in Nepal on May 15, 1955. He was soon appointed to St. Xavier’s School, Godavari, as vice principal, hostel prefect, and senior English teacher. It turned out that he taught not only English, but also biology, maths, and general knowledge, to the senior boys. He also had the task of starting and nurturing the Nepal Scouts at Godavari the same year. On December 4, 1958 their Majesties, King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev and Queen Ratna Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah made an unofficial visit to Godavari. Fr. Watrin had the opportunity to welcome them and their children, show them around, and have tea with them.

Fr. Watrin at the weekly Friday afternoon checkup.

In 1962 he became the Principal at St. Xavier School, Godavari. In the same year he was appointed to the first Bi-National Fulbright Education Committee in Nepal. He is a member in that committee till now. One of the major events while he was the Principal was to organize the 10th anniversary programme of Godavari Scouts at which His Royal Highness Crown Prince Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev himself presided,

By then, Fr. Niesen, the previous principal of Godavari, had moved to Jawalakhel where he started GAA (Godavari Alumni Association). After finishing his term as the principal at Godavari, Fr. Watrin in 1969 became the moderator and director of GAA in Thamel. Besides working at GAA, he also taught English to four classes of students at Padma Kanya Girls Campus for two years. From 1973 to 1976, he served on the managing committee of Kanti Ishwari Primary School too.

In 1983, the present GAA hall was ready, and Fr. Watrin welcomed Her Majesty Queen Aishwarya Laximi Devi Shah to inaugurate it. He recalls Her Majesty’s compliments as she said, “People would be jealous today while I have come to GAA, but if other organizations do the good work you have been doing, I will go to their functions as well.” At present, the GAA is involved in many activities, such as One Act Play Festivals, basketball tournaments, issuing monthly newspapers, and various social action programmes.

In 1987, Fr. Watrin was appointed representative of the Ryder-Cheshire Foundation of England for their Home for the Disabled at Jorpati. The following year he became the founder and chairman of the managing committee of St. Xavier’s Science College for men and women 1.Sc. students. He continues today as the chairman of Sr. Xavier’s Campus. Another work he undertook in 1988 was his appointment as the national chairman for Ashoka Foundation for Nepal Public Service Entrepreneurs.

About five years later, he was struck by the brilliant idea of starting an organization In Nepal to aid the sick and the poor. Thus, he became the founder and patron of Social Action Volunteers in Nepal as a registered society in 1993. In the same year he welcomed the royal dignitaries once again to the inauguration of St. Xavier’s Campus in Maitighar. In 1996 he was appointed the national chairman for Habitat for Humanity in Nepal.

Even though he has been serving all these various organizations, he always remains very much a Jesuit. It. He is one of the most important fundraisers in the Nepal Region. He Is also a good traveler, and often he is found on international trips for various purposes. While he is so mild and friendly with all of us, on the other hand, he is an iron man physically, spiritually, and psychologically.

While talking about his visions of the mission, Fr. Watrin said, “In all my speeches I keep emphasizing whether you are a Christian or a Muslim or a Hindu or a Buddhist or a Jew, they all have programmes aimed at the poor people. We see beggars being supported near temples and people being fed at different times in different places. God has a special love for poor people. Christians bring out this message very strongly. Jesus says, ‘Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do unto Me.’ This sums up the Christian message. Therefore, all of us are called upon to help poor people. If we say we love God, we cannot do anything to help God, but we can do a lot to help the poor people whom God loves. In our tradition, many saints helped the poor, so we are also called upon to help them. To serve God we have to serve the poor.”

He went on saying, “Many boys tell me, ‘Father, you have made us misfits in society – our society of corruption, nepotism, and so on. However, we are happy, we sleep well at night, and we feel that we are people of integrity.’ So, my friends, I think it is more important to make good people than to make bad Christians.”

The scholastic was applying pain balm on his right palm after the basketball tournament when his friend asked him, “What’s wrong with your hand? You had no complaints on the court even after throwing three of your opponents to the ground!”

The scholastic replied, “No, this was not a basketball match. But after the match I shook hands With Fr. Watrin as he was congratulating all of us.”

(Text and photos from the 50 Anniversary Book of Nepal Jesuit Society, 2001.)