BishopAccountability.org
	Web Site Chronicles Disgraced Priest's Prison Time, Offers Encouragement By Lona O'Connor Palm Beach Post November 19, 2009 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/web-site-chronicles-disgraced-priest-s-prison-time-73290.html DELRAY BEACH — During the three years from his arrest to his conviction for stealing from his parish, there was a complete lockdown on personal information about the Rev. John Skehan. Now that he has been moved from the rectory of St. Vincent Ferrer parish in Delray Beach to the lockup at the Martin Correctional Institution in Indiantown, friend and foe alike can find out what Skehan, 82, is thinking, reading, praying about and eating, thanks to a Web site set up by his supporters. The Web site is written by his friend Michelle Donahue, a former head of the St. Vincent parent organization, who visits him almost every weekend, bearing good tidings from the blog and from friends in Delray Beach. Donahue chronicles Skehan's life since May 1, from the lows — bouts of depression and ill health — to the highs — offering spiritual guidance to other prisoners. Well-wishers on the blog include a cadre of Skehan's Delray Beach parishioners who never faltered in their support of Skehan, even during the hellstorm of heavy-breathing news coverage in the worldwide press, including particularly sharp-tongued reports on his spendthrift lifestyle by the anti-clergy tabloid writers in his home country, Ireland. Stalwarts of Skehan's guestbook are developer Frank McKinney and his wife, Nilsa, as well as parishioners, nuns, other religious professionals and a few strangers who have taken up Skehan's cause. In six months they have filled eight screens on the Web site with fond messages of encouragement. The page is set up on a nonprofit social media site used by people battling chronic illnesses. Skehan began his prison term May 1 after he was sentenced to 14 months in prison and seven years of probation. He pleaded guilty to grand theft of more than $100,000 from the collection plates at St. Vincent Ferrer, where he was a well-loved pastor for more than 40 years. His successor, Francis Guinan, received a four-year prison term in March after being convicted of related theft charges. Both men were relieved of their priestly duties by the Diocese of Palm Beach. Law enforcement officials characterized Skehan and Guinan as skilled money-launderers with secret bank accounts and strongboxes in their offices for storing cash skimmed from Sunday collections at the wealthy Delray Beach parish. Law enforcement officials originally estimated the amount of money missing at $8.6 million, though Donahue contests that amount. The snapshot that emerges of Skehan is that of a frail pilgrim in a violent wilderness: In one of her first posts, Donahue wrote that Skehan's attorneys "were shocked to see the drastic change in his physical appearance in just 2 1/2 short weeks...It is a hard, tough world to endure for a man half his age, let alone at almost 82 years old with serious medical needs." Among Skehan's ailments: high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension, insomnia, high cholesterol, severe depression, hearing loss and level-B prostate cancer. The next day, a judge denied his request to leave for medical reasons. In July, Skehan observed his 82nd birthday inside the stark gray walls, among 1,500 male prisoners, most serving terms far longer than his. Shortly after Skehan was interned in May, a prisoner serving a 15-year sentence for carjacking was stabbed to death in the prison yard. Another fatal stabbing occurred in 2005. In 2006, a state prison officer was charged with planning to smuggle drugs into the prison. But not all Skehan's days are grim. Early on, friends consoled him that God had put him in prison to save souls. Sure enough, he was soon studying the Bible with a formerly non-religious inmate, Donahue reports. Donahue remains a staunch advocate for the man who was her pastor since she was a girl, even while conceding his guilt in some matters. "I am proud that he admitted to his wrongdoing and takes responsibility for his actions," she said. Donahue said the experience of setting up the blog has been inspiring. "I've never been a part of something so powerful in my life," said Donahue, who visits Skehan every weekend and says he has been spiritually transformed, to the point that when he was offered space in a more comfortable area of the prison, he opted to stay with the men who seemed to be touched by his humility and faith. "I'm following the path Christ has put me on," Donahue wrote, quoting Skehan. He reads at least two books a week, as well as news and sports reports from Kilkenny, Ireland, his hometown. Pending time off for good behavior or a review of his case, Skehan is scheduled to be released April 3. Comments from Web site Dear Pops! Just wanted to say Hi and let you know we are all here wishing you were here too. We talk and think as though you are so don't think we forget for a minute. Dear Fr Jack Just back from a holiday with Mary and Tom, glad to hear you are getting on OK. We are thinking of you over in this Emerald Isle. Dear Fr. Skehan, You are in Gods arms. The one set of footprints in the sand belongs to Him. He is carrying you. I find that thought comforting in times of distress. I pray that you feel the comfort of His arms around you. God Bless and keep you.
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