Feb. 20, 4:00 p.m., mark

First things first -- the following is a prayer written specifically for Joe and the family by the priest at their church, Father Phil O'Kennedy. Ginny asked me to get it posted here, and she will be deeply grateful for everyone who is willing to offer it up.

Prayer for Joe Leahy


Lord God, heavenly Father of us all,
We know that You are with us in the good times,
and dare to trust that You are even more
surely with us in our trials.

May we never give way to ill-will or discouragement,
but persist always in Your grace, mercy and love.

We beg You to watch over Joe, Ginny, Keith and Stephen Leahy,
and the extended Leahy and Warnecke families
who are “carrying the cross” at this time.

Lord God, please restore Joe to fullness of health and well-being,
Restore him to his family,
to the students that he loves,
and to all of us who so respect and admire him.

May Joe soon “walk tall” in our midst again,
and may we live always for your honor and glory.

We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

Our Father . . .

Hail Mary . . .

Glory Be to the Father . . .


Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

St. Joseph, pray for us.


Written by Rev. Phil O’Kennedy,
(Pastor of St. John’s Catholic Church, Madison, AL)

On the medical front, Joe is making steady progress and we're seeing more improvement in responsiveness and movement on his left side, while his right side remains strong.

Keith got home for the weekend from Mississippi St., while Stephen (freshman) ran today in the first-ever track meet at Catholic High School (new track team this year). He ran the first leg of the 4 X 800 and PR'd with a time of 2 min. 25 secs. You can't keep a good man down -- good job, Steve.

Joe's mom Jackie and sister Lisa attended the memorial service for the victims at the University last night, and said it was a beautiful and poignant ceremony. (I was able to watch it live online on the website of WHNT-TV. You might check to see if they have all or parts of it archived).

Again, they ask that everyone keep up the prayers, not only for us, but for all the families affected by this tragedy.

Charge On.

Love and thanks to all.