Schools

Path To St. Theresa 'Divine Providence' For New Principal

Dr. Milt Kobus' path to St. Theresa began as a boy after he survived the 'Our Lady of the Angels' fire in Chicago.

Dr. Milt Kobus' path to become principal at St. Theresa began with the 'Our Lady of the Angels' fire in Chicago and ended watching a loved one succumb to Alzheimer's disease decades later.

In between, Kobus, 65, spent a lifetime in education. Before becoming principal at St. Theresa's in July Kobus was the principal of Leo Catholic High School on Chicago's south side. was not a place Kobus expected to arrive at.

"It's a sense of divine providence," Kobus said. "I really feel that."

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In 1958, Kobus was a seventh grader at the Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago and his brother was a second grader in the school. Kobus said that around 2:30 p.m. the smoke alarm sounded.

"As soon as the nun went and opened the door ... instantaneously that room became black, just choking smoke," Kobus said. "How long that school had been burning before the alarm went off, I really have no idea."

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Kobus said the nun began leading the class of about 50 children out, but some students could not see and others could not breathe. At some point in the chaos of the evacuation the door closed and the bodies of students began to pile up against it.

Kobus said he opened a window in the second-floor classroom and he and another student stuck their heads outside to breath. He said below was chaos as fire personnel and nearby residents from the neighborhood descended on the school. Some students and teachers jumped to the concrete below.

Three nuns and 92 students died in the fire.

"Within a short period of time a fireman came and axed down the door," Kobus said. "And then hollered to us to form like a human chain. I was the very last one in that chain to get out of the classroom. And then he took us down the stairwell."

"I saw a lot of suffering and a lot of death on that day," Kobus said. "It's really one of the defining moments of my life. And therefore I take that experience and I bring it here to St. Theresa, but I bring it to any place that I've been. Not just the idea of fire, but safety in general."

Kobus said the fire helped shape his and his brother's life. His brother eventually entered the seminary and became a priest in 1977. He served in various parishes and became chaplain of St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital in 1987.

Kobus said he considered becoming a priest, but he wanted to have a family. Instead, he entered education and served Catholic schools a lay person. Throughout his career he has taught every subject at nearly every grade level. He studied at Oxford University and has a doctorate in theology.

The last four years Kobus was the principal of Leo High School on the south side of Chicago.

Kobus said he stumbled upon the St. Theresa position by accident while on the archdiocese website in 2011. He was impressed by the school's strong academic background and liked the fact that it was a larger school with about 500 students, so he sent his resume.

The next day he received a response from St. Theresa's Pastor Richard Zborowski. " 'Dear Milt, I know you,'" Kobus said. "He went on to say, 'You probably don't remember me. We met 40 years ago—I was in the seminary with your brother.'"

At the time, Kobus' brother, John, had fallen ill from Alzheimer's disease. As John's condition worsened, the family had to put him in a rehabilitation center. On a late June day, John was being moved to a floor where he would receive more specialized attention and Kobus was there to provide support and to keep his brother from becoming to upset by the change.

He took his brother to Mass and afterward the two sat on a bench outside of the chapel.

"Sadly it becomes almost like a monologue, because he can't respond," Kobus said.

While they sat on the bench, Pastor Zborowski approached and inquired about Kobus' brother. Zborowski had heard about John's illness and, by sheer coincidence, happened to come to visit. Later that day, Zborowski and Kobus talked about St. Theresa.

"This pastor to me is wonderful. Not a week goes by that he does not go to a home for the elderly [or somewhere else in the community]," Kobus said. "His pastoral desire is to not just run a fine parish but to get out and work with people."

In September, Kobus' brother died. He was 60.

"It forces you to reflect on your own mortality," Kobus said. "It encourages your faith in God and eternal life. And that is one of the three things I told parents when I came out here."

Kobus said his priorities at St. Theresa are a curriculum that includes a real solid, serious understanding of Roman Catholic theology, a very strong academic program, and the safety of students.

Kobus rises every day at 4 a.m. and is on the road by 5 a.m. to arrive at St. Theresa from his Lakeview home by 6 a.m. He tries to stop by some classrooms every day in an effort to get to know all of the students.

"Make them understand that I am the kind of principal that really works for and with them, and that they would be able to pick up on that," Kobus said.


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