Fisher Alumnus to Celebrate 50 Years of Priesthood

St. John Fisher University alumnus Reverend Norm Tanck, CSB, a member of the Congregation of St. Basil, will commemorate 50 years of priesthood on Sunday, April 21. The Golden Jubilee celebration for Fr. Tanck will be integrated into the 10 a.m. Mass at the Hermance Family Chapel of St. Basil the Great, followed by a reception open to all attendees.

Originally from Irondequoit, New York, Fr. Tanck was raised in St. Margaret Mary Parish and graduated from the Aquinas Institute in 1962 before completing his studies at Fisher in 1967. Subsequently, he joined the novitiate for the Basilian Fathers, was ordained as a deacon in 1973, and engaged in campus ministry at Fisher alongside Reverend Joe Trovato, CSB. On April 20, 1974, he was ordained as a priest at St. Thomas More Church and celebrated his inaugural Mass the following day at Fisher in Kearney Hall’s Cleary Family Auditorium. Following his ordination, he remained at Fisher as an academic counselor for student services.

Fr. Tanck later served as the director of campus ministry at both Nazareth College and St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto. Upon his return to Fisher in 1985, he assumed the roles of dean of student life and superior of the Basilian community until 1989. In that year, he was elected to the Basilian General Council and served as their vicar general for the following eight years. In 1998, he became the pastor of Christ the King Parish and supervised the amalgamation of the Irondequoit parishes into St. Kateri Tekakwitha Parish before becoming its first pastor in 2010. Two years later, Fr. Tanck was appointed to the Frassati House in Toronto, assuming the position of rector. Presently, he serves as associate pastor at St. Basil’s Church, ordained coordinator of the Toronto Basilian Lay Associates, and director of associates for men entering the Basilian Fathers.