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Guided by Faith - Leonard J. Kosiek - God's Educator · Guided by Faith

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to this special edition of Guided by Faith, God's Educator.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Amongst the wave of Polish immigrants who made their way to America during the early 1900s were Martin Kuszek and Mary Thielosz.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: Reportedly, Mary and Martin met during the voyage across the Atlantic and both found their way to Chicago, which by that time had already become the largest Polish immigrant community in the United States.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: Shortly after arriving in Chicago, the couple married and began a family.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: Between 1918 and 1926, Martin and Mary were blessed with four children.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: Cecilia, Stanley, Max, and Leonard.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Leonard, my dad, was born on August 22nd, 1926, just over 100 years ago.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: After a courageous eight-plus-year battle with Parkinson's disease, Dad was called home to the Lord on May 29, 2008.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: Still today, few days pass without a thought of gratitude for the special gifts of life Dad gave to me and our family.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: As the son of working class first-generation immigrants, as a child, Dad did not have much.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: Unfortunately, his father died at a young age when Dad was less than 10 years old.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: With no father figure in his life, he ultimately gained much of his support and direction from his sister Seal and a few family friends.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: From what we have been told, it was his sister that saw him through elementary school at Saints Peter and Paul.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: The same school my siblings Mark, Christine, and I attended years later.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: In 1945, he graduated from Deal Salle Institute, the Christian Brothers High School, where he would eventually start his career as an educator, spending over 25 years during which he served as a teacher, assistant principal, the dean of men, and head baseball coach.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Before starting that career, he attended and graduated from what is today Illinois State University.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: Dad was the only member of his family to graduate from college and possibly from high school.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: From that point, and for the remainder of his life, education would be at the core of his persona.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: As a Christian, I seek to live my life in a way that will, in some small way, achieve God's word, to love one another as he has loved me.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: I am uniquely fortunate to have been gifted by God, a dad that lived this word every day of his life, and more importantly, abundantly shared that gift.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: To many of his friends, Dad was Mr.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: Koziaak or Coach or Lenny.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: Through Dad's wisdom, I was never one of his students, nor did I play on any of his teens.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_00: So Mr.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: Koziaak or coach didn't fit.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I was bright enough not to call him Lenny.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yet, more than anyone, I was blessed by Dad's willingness and incredible ability to lead and teach.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: For me, the topics of Dad's leadership were a bit different.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: That's not to say that we didn't spend many hours revisiting notable historical events, or dissecting the baseball or basketball rule book.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Dad spent many nights and weekends as an umpire and referee, or remembering the 1966 Chicagoland Prep League Championship Doubleheader versus Holy Cross, because there was no one better at any of those than Dad.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: Before speaking to the gifts Dad provided, I wished to share one specific exchange with him, from which what he said has stayed with me still to this day.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: One summer evening, as a mid-teen, I offered a question, most likely in the form of a complaint, as to why we had to spend so much time helping maintain the houses of both of our grandmothers.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: Dad's response, which at the time I thought were his own words, was From those with more, more will be expected.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_00: It took a few years for me to realize Dad had borrowed these words from Luke.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: Nonetheless, the message had been delivered, only as my dad could, and that question was never again raised by me.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: From Luke chapter 12, verse 48.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: Everyone to whom much has been given, from him much will be required, and from him to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: As for other life lessons, there were many.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: These have been the most impactful for me.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: Faith.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_00: For Dad, faith was much more than regularly attending 915 Mass, which he did notwithstanding the fact that there were a few Sunday mornings he might have wanted and most likely needed a few more winks.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: Faith is how you live your life every minute of every day.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: Faith is believing fully that God has a greater plan for all of us, one which Dad now deservedly enjoys, and that the only way to experience this plan is to love your neighbor as God loves you.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Courage.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: Dad's unwavering commitment to do the right thing, no matter what those around him thought or believed.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: Whether it was making the call from behind the plate or disciplining one of his students or one of his sons, Dad was steadfast in his decisions.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: Decisions made, always with your best interest in mind, whether you knew it or not.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_00: Hope.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: Dad had a burning desire to see those around him succeed.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: Not so that he could claim the credit or bask in the glow of their glory, but so that others could realize the pleasure of achieving their goals, growing in the grace of God, and fully understanding the depth of their gifts and talents.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: Love.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Dad lived a life full of love.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: He loved his friends and colleagues.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: He loved his players.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: Although he had a difficult time showing it outwardly, I do believe he loved his grandchildren dearly.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: He loved my siblings, Mark and Christine and me in ways that will endure for the rest of our lives.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_00: But to fully know love, all you had to do was watch how he loved Arm.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_00: Complete, unconditional, and unpretentious love for over 53 years.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_00: If this is not what Jesus meant in describing love, then it cannot be achieved.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: Although a lifelong educator, there were no grades in dad's life's lessons.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_00: Only one simple expectation to do unto others as God has done for you.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_00: My dad left me with great gifts.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: I have cherished them, nurtured them, and to the best of my ability have passed them along.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: I can only hope that I have been as good a father to our children as he was for me.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because he was forever a deal-sale man, I believe it appropriate to close this session of Guided by Faith with the Lesalian Prayer, prayer for a teacher, and might as well be for a coach.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_00: Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: You, O Lord, are my strength, my patience, my light, and my counsel.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: It is you who touch the hearts of the young men entrusted to my care.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: Abandon me not to myself for one moment.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: For my own guidance and that of my students and players, grant me the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and piety, the spirit of holy fair view, and an ardent zeal to procure your glory.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: I unite my efforts to those of Jesus Christ.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: I beg the most Blessed Virgin, Saint Joseph, the Guardian Angels, and Saint John Baptiste de La Salle to protect me this day in the performance of my duties.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: Happy birthday, Dad.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: I love you.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: May you live with God forever.