Father Anthony Whalen said he began thinking about becoming a priest as a first-grader in Columbus’ South End.

His journey to that goal had a few detours along the way – funeral homes, the U.S. Air Force, Arlington National Cemetery and the U.S. Naval Academy – all linked by a thread of service to others, and all leading to his priestly ordination Saturday, Oct. 31 at Columbus St. Catharine of Siena Church by Bishop Earl Fernandes.

Also ordained to the priesthood that day was Father Kennedy Ofezu. Both were ordained by Bishop Fernandes as transitional deacons on March 14 this year and completed their discernment for the priesthood at the Pontifical College Josephinum.

Father Whalen, 48, was born in Columbus. His family attended Columbus St. Leo Church, now St. Leo the Great Oratory staffed by the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest. His family moved in 1970 to Euless, Texas, a suburb in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, and he graduated from Trinity High School there.

His parents, Michael and Dianne Whelan; his stepmother, Reylinda Whalen; and a brother, Michael, are deceased. He has one living sister, Anna Rabe.

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“The first time I thought about being a priest was in first grade at St. Leo School and that desire never left me,” he said.

“My family had some connections to the funeral home management business. When I left high school, I decided to go to a college that specialized in training for that occupation because, like the priesthood, it provides the opportunity to help others in a time of need.”

Father Whalen received an associate degree in mortuary science in 2008 and followed that by attending the Mid-American College of Funeral Service in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which awarded him a Bachelor of Science degree in funeral service management.

He was a funeral director in Texas for about a decade, then served in the U.S. Air Force, from which he had to retire for medical reasons. His military service and the knowledge gained in his previous occupation led to a civilian position as an operations specialist at Arlington National Cemetery, the nation’s largest burial site for those who served in the armed forces.

After two years there, he became executive director of cemeteries for the U.S. Navy. That put him in charge of six cemeteries that the Navy operates exclusively for its own personnel – five in the United States and one overseas. He also was director of memorial affairs at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

This put him in touch with many Navy chaplains and with Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, who urged him to discern whether he was being called to the priesthood.

“Since that thought always had been in the back of my mind, I decided to accept Archbishop Broglio’s invitation and got in touch with Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, who accepted me as a seminarian for his archdiocese in 2021,” Father Whalen said.

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He attended St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore for two years. “In 2023, I discerned that I should be serving as a priest closer to where I grew up and asked Archbishop Lori if I could transfer to Columbus,” he said.

The archbishop agreed and Father Whalen came to the Josephinum, where he earned a Master of Divinity degree. He also earned a Baccalaureate degree in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum) in Rome. He was able to earn the latter degree without having to study in Rome because of an agreement between the two institutions.

While at the Josephinum, he had summer assignments at Columbus St. Christopher Church and Johnstown Church of the Ascension. He spent his pastoral year – the final year before becoming a priest – at St. John the Baptist Parish in Knox County, which includes Mount Vernon St. Vincent de Paul and Danville St. Luke churches.

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“That was a year of just trying to take it all in and learning as much from the people I served as they learned from me,” he said.

“It was wonderful to share everyone’s joy as I administered the sacrament of baptism and officiated at weddings and, as I had done in the past, to share at times of sorrow at funerals. Really, all the roles I’ve had in the past have been in preparation for the priesthood.

“I’m currently teaching eighth-grade religion at St. Catharine School, and here too, it’s a case of learning going both ways.”

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Asked who he considered his role models, Father Whalen said, “In the present, Archbishop Broglio and Archbishop Lori and the military chaplains I’ve met. Many priests from the time I was young also were influential, but most of them have passed away.

“Naturally, I’m looking forward most to celebrating Mass and being able to consecrate the Eucharist,” he said, “but I’m also anxious to hear confessions, administer all the sacraments and give guidance and counsel to people. My experience in Knox County gave me some of those opportunities and I look forward to more chances to serve.”

Father Whalen will celebrate his first Mass as a priest Sunday, Nov. 1 at his home parish, St. Leo the Great Oratory.