Clockwise, from far left: Father Jerry Overbeck on campus in 1986; teaching students about post- Vatican II changes to Madonna della Strada in the ’90s; chatting with students in his Mertz residence hall room in 1999; holding a baby he baptized for two alumni whose wedding he also officiated; at commencement with a Loyola graduate; in the corn with alum Troy Fleming’s children Garrett, Maggie, and Pierce; and making the rounds on a recent Tuesday night to share food with his neigh- bors in Baumhart Hall.
you are surfing, you have to learn to spot the wave you think has the most power, and you can feel it as soon as you catch the wave,” he says. “If you don’t lean in to it enough, you’re dead in the water. If you go too far, you tumble [off the board].” Just like discernment, he says. “You’ll feel
it when you catch the wave, when you catch where God is working in your life and you’re on a roll, man. If you don’t lean in enough, or you lean too much and try to control things, uh oh. There’s only one God, and lest there be any confusion, it would not be you!” he laughs. With Overbeck’s willing laugh and engag-
ing storytelling, it’s easy to see why students and alumni have been drawn to him for so long. But he is also a rock in difficult moments. Troy Fleming (JD ’13) and his wife, Dawn,
The Calsins remember encountering
Overbeck for the first time at the 10:15 p.m. Sunday Mass as undergraduates. They found his homilies relatable and relevant. When the couple got engaged, Overbeck was a natural choice to preside at their wedding. That would be the first of many sacraments
he would perform for the Calsin family: he’s baptized all three of their sons, heard the boys’ first confessions, and gave them their First Communion. The family’s eldest son, Jack, even asked Overbeck to be his confirma- tion sponsor. “I couldn’t even respond, I just got up and gave him a hug,” Overbeck recalls. “I was just so moved.” It’s an annual tradition for Overbeck to ac-
company the Calsins to a pumpkin patch and corn maze every fall, and he’s always a guest at their extended family celebration of St. Joseph’s Day. They invite him when they bring their sons to campus to cheer on the Loyola basketball team. And beyond the fun family, Overbeck still supports and guides the Calsins like he did with those applicable homilies dur- ing their undergraduate years. “When I was a student, I was comfort- able talking to him. As a parent I’ve been
comfortable talking to him, the same as a friend,” Maria says. “He’s just genuine.” Mike adds, “He is a good listener and a good thought-provoker. He has in-depth conversa- tions with people, and yet makes them feel really comfortable.” So comfortable, in fact, that Overbeck is in
high demand for alumni weddings and bap- tisms. He’s never taken the time to count up the ceremonies, but if it is a weekend between April and October, odds are high that he’s presiding at a sacrament for Loyola alumni. June and July, however, are the exception.
For the past seven years, Overbeck has spent those two months in Hawaii. He works on research and writing, and also presides at the cathedral in Honolulu. That’s where he got the name Pono (“righteousness” in Hawaiian), be- stowed upon him by a friend who was a high priest in the indigenous Hawaiian religion. It’s also where he hits the water. Remember
the “surfing Jesuit” nickname? Overbeck took up the sport in the ’60s on the West Coast, and fell more in love with surfing when he spent a summer working at a parish in Hawaii during the early years of his priesthood. Surfing actu- ally reminds him of Jesuit discernment. “When
turned to Overbeck when their youngest son, Garrett, was born with meningitis and it was unclear whether he would survive. Overbeck dropped everything to go to the hospital to pray with the family. He remembers cradling Garrett in his arms, with the other two Fleming children hugging his legs, and Dawn and Troy standing close, all fervently praying. “It was what we needed and it gave such peace and comfort to us,” says Dawn. “We had already spent some years together, and this was some- thing that now binds us for a lifetime.” Today, Garrett is an energetic, completely
healthy four-year-old. Last year, on a family trip to the pumpkin patch with Overbeck, Garrett was scooting around a corn pit and happily riding down the slide. “My heart was so full of gratitude I almost cried, just to see this kid healthy as a horse,” Overbeck says. Inside the Terry Student Center, Overbeck’s
office is decorated with photos, cards, and notes from the families, alumni, and students who love him. There are wedding and baptism pictures, family photos, Christmas cards, and more, hanging on all four walls of the room; a visual representation of the love and apprecia- tion the Loyola community has for him. And the feeling is mutual. “What I don’t
make in dollars and cents, I do make in job sat- isfaction,” he says. “I feel like God has lavished me with so many gifts by being here for 40 years—mostly the relationships.” L
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