Page 2-Tuesday, August 12, 1980-The Michigan Daily
Mysterious
priest leaves
fortune in coins
~ 0 -u Y

4

uponh1
JEROME, Ariz. (AP) - Outside the
door of the Holy Family Catholic Chur-
ch in this ghost town-turned-artists'
colony, the sign on the small black box
read, "Tourists: 10 cents."
Few people paid any attention to the
clink of the coins - or to the money
donated by parish members - until
June 8, 1979.
ON THAT .DAY, four men gathered
outside the church to discuss the fact
that they had not seen Father Juan
Atucha Gorostiaga, known to residents
of the former mining town as Father
John, for three days. A Claretian priest
first assigned to Jerome in 1927, his
usual habit was to sit on the church
stairs with one of his dogs several hours
out of each day.
After forcing their way inside, they
found Father John, 78,.alive but in poor
condition pinned between the wall and
three stacked mattresses.
The condition of the rooms shocked
even Glenn Baisch, who was aware of
the priest's eccentric behavior and
penchant for never discarding
anything.
"ONLY A NARROW walkway
remained inside the rooms," Baisch
said. "It wasn't clean. Stuff was
stacked everywhere."
As the ambulance was preparing to
leave with the priest, Baisch said he
realized that "people in the bedroom
were carrying out coffee cans full of
silver and bills."
Father John died July 17, 1979, of
what was diagnosed as complications
from diabetes and severe ar-
teriosclerosis.

cleatli
EXACTLY HOW MUCH money was
removed, by whom, when, and where it
ended up have all become the subject of
rumor and conjecture.
Ron Ballatore, Jerone's police chief,
said former Chief Chris Williams "told
me they recovered about $60,000,
mostly in coins."
The discovery of the money was kept
out of the newspapers until the building
was thoroughly searched for additional
money. This failed, however, to prevent
the ransacking of Father John's
residence.
THEN, LAST APRIL, two men were
seen Lasing the church. They fled in a
van as police approached, leaving four
boxes of coins spilled inside the church
on the floor.
The face value was $4,714. Many of
the coins were old and had silver con-
tent as well as antique value.
"It was hidden throughout the church
in all sorts of different places by Father
John," said the bishop. "Ten thousand
dollars was discovered in a private
banking account."
.The bishop said $27,000 of the total is
on deposit with the diocese, while
$43,000 is held in a Prescott bank.
"Father John clearly tried to live his
vow of poverty," said Maurice Brill, a
part-time Jerome resident and a for-
mer Jesuit priest.
"He just didn't-know what to do with
the money. And he didn't want forces
outside the church to deal with it."
The church is still open to the public,
but officials have not decided whether
to restore the collection box to its place
on the steps.

Man buys ad in New York Times
Put your money where your mouth is. That's one motto James Scrippseof
Lopez, Wash, likes to follow. The chairman of the oard of Pioneer Press felt
so strongly about Edward Kennedy that he took out a quarter-page adver-
tisement in The New York Times-at a cost of $4,800-denouncing the
Democratic presidential hopeful's character. In the ad, he warned the
Democratic delegates to "remember Chappaquiddick." In an interview
yesterday, he said, "I am convinced that Ted Kennedy is a very suspicious
character." 5
Turtle walks to Kansas
Scientists who attached a transmitter to the shell of a 212-pound turtle in
the Gulf of Mexico were mystified by radio signals that indicated the turtle
had moved inland and set up residence in Kansas. So the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration researchers investigated. They followed
the transmitter's satellite-relayed signals and found the $5,000 device
holding open the door of a fisherman's house in Galena, Kansas. It seems the
loggerhead turtle, named Diane by the scientists, shed the floating transmit-
ter somewhere off the coast of Texas. Two fishermen, Garry Huffman and
Fred Vaughn, said they found the 7-pound cylinder on a beach 30 miles west
of Port Arthur, Texas. NOAA said Huffman, who used the device as a door-
stop, returned it two weeks ago. Scientists were following Dianne's
movements to better identify turtle feeding, nesting, and mating areas. L
Manchester wears bra in Salt Lake City
Singer Mellissa Manchester was surprised to learn before performing a
recent concert at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City that female
artists are required to wear bras on stage. In the middle of her show, Man-
chester stopped and told the audience about her performing contract.
... Your school is real interesting because it has its own clause and it
states women must wear brassieres on stage." The audience at first ap-
peared shocked, then Manchester quipped: "Frankly, I would be interested
to meet the young man who is going to check!" Q
On the outside
Skies will be partly cloudy today with a high temperature in the high-
70s.
Happenings
FILMS
AAFC-Juliet of the Spirits, 7 p.m., Monika, 9:30 p.m., Angell Aud. A. Q
The Michigan Daily
(USPS:14-900)
Volume XC, No. 58-S
Tuesday, August 12. 1980
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SLOW DOWN,
you move too fast.

SAVE GAS!