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VA Chaplain comforts veterans, leads chaplaincy
By Andrew Junker, The Catholic Sun
October 4, 2007
Fr. Ken Kleiber is a busy man.
Early morning often finds him celebrating the 6:15 a.m. Mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Glendale. And some nights, he offers the daily evening Mass on the other side of the Valley at St. Patrick Parish in Scottsdale.
But his main duty is serving as a Catholic chaplain at the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center in central Phoenix.
Ordained and incardinated in the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1968, Fr. Kleiber sought permission to move to Phoenix in 1977 to be near his ailing uncle, also a priest. He assisted in various parishes and filled in at the VA hospital when the need arose.
“One thing led to another,” Fr. Kleiber explained. “So, you could say I’ve been on loan from the Archdiocese of Chicago since ’77.”
That’s a good thing for the patients at the medical center, who all seem to like and appreciate their chaplain.
“He’s well-known here,” said Franciscan Father Matthias Crehan, the other Catholic chaplain who serves at the medical center.
On Sept. 20, Fr. Kleiber held a printout of patients’ names highlighted in different colors.
“When I came in this morning, I drew up the Catholic list. That’s my main responsibility. I’ve got these men in yellow; they’re the new patients,” he explained.
“Then I drop in and see some of these other guys. The pinks are the ones who have already received the anointing of the sick,” he said. “I go around not only to see the new patients, but also just to drop in on the regulars.”
Some of those “regulars” live in the medical center’s nursing home.
“We’ve got one guy in our nursing home who was one of the original Navajo code talkers,” Fr. Kleiber said on his way to visit some of the residents. “Oh, he has stories he can tell you.”
Many of the vets sat outside their rooms, waiting for Fr. Kleiber to come. He asked about their health and chatted with each one before giving them a blessing.
“Sometimes, visiting these guys, I think, ‘Who’s helping whom?’” Fr. Kleiber said as he made his way back to his office. “Well, we’re helping each other.”
Family spirit
In 2002, Fr. Kleiber was named chief of chaplains at the medical center. The title carries with it greater administrative duties — which Fr. Kleiber described as a “headache” — and also made him the leader of the other chaplains.
In addition to Fr. Crehan, the medical center has two full-time Protestant and one Jewish chaplain.
“We get along just great,” said Fr. Kleiber. “From what I hear, that’s unusual.”
Fr. Crehan said the inter-faith harmony in the chaplaincy can be attributed to a goal shared by all the chaplains, regardless of religion.
“We work together,” he said. “We’re all focused on the same ministry: whatever we can do for our veterans.”
For the Catholic chaplains, that means administering the sacraments to the Catholic patients, most frequently the Eucharist and the anointing of the sick.
But, as Fr. Kleiber noted, “It’s not only administering the sacraments. It’s also to let them know their chaplains are down here praying for them and concerned about them. That’s what we try to communicate to the patients.”
“It’s inspiring to know these men, to know how they’ve served their country,” Fr. Crehan said. “Just knowing what they did, particularly in World War II — you know Tom Brokaw’s idea of the ‘Greatest Generation?’ I understand what he’s saying.”
Serving these veterans presents unique challenges, Fr. Kleiber said.
“It’s a different ballgame here. You’ve got to realize that these men — whether they’re from World War II, Vietnam or the Persian Gulf — you’ve got to realize what they’ve been through,” he said.
Many of the veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. Some are also very poor. Fr. Crehan estimated that as many as a third of the patients at the hospital are homeless.
As a Franciscan, working with the poor has been very appealing to Fr. Crehan. The chaplaincy hands out food coupons to the vets and allows them to rest in the air-conditioned chapel.
In addition to working with the vets, the chaplains often provide spiritual counsel to the employees at the medical center.
“You could call us the stabilizing influence,” Fr. Kleiber said. “We’ve got our hands full.”
Many of the employees attend daily Mass at the medical center chapel, or seek out one of the priests when they’re having a particularly rough day.
The chapel also draws Catholics from the surrounding areas for the Saturday night vigil Mass, which Fr. Kleiber celebrates. The Mass is often standing room only. That’s nice, because it give the vets a chance to see people from the outside world, Fr. Kleiber said.
“The family spirit is unique here,” Fr. Crehan said of all the different people the chaplains minister to.
It keeps the days long and busy. But Fr. Kleiber wouldn’t have it any other way.
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