Chancellor, rector returning to New York after six-year tenure

Orchard Lake — So much of Msgr. Thomas Machalski’s life has been spent at the Orchard Lake Schools, he has a hard time putting the schools’ impact on his life into words.

Last week, it was announced Msgr. Machalski will return to his native Brooklyn, N.Y., ending his six-year tenure as the 11th chancellor of the Orchard Lake Schools and rector of SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary, which prepares lay people and foreign-born seminarians — primarily from Poland — to serve the Church.

“Orchard Lake has been so much part of my life,” said Msgr. Machalski, who will be going on sabbatical before taking up parish ministry for the Diocese of Brooklyn. “I never thought I would come back here in a leadership position. But it was really like a homecoming in many ways. To experience things come full circle.”

A graduate of St. Mary’s Prep in 1976, St. Mary’s College in 1980 and named rector and chancellor of Orchard Lake Schools in 2011, the Brooklyn, N.Y., native considers Orchard Lake his second home.

“I’m proud of all our graduates, they all leave here well-prepared,” Msgr. Machalski said. “There is always this sense of gratification during graduation, when you are sending people out to the world. That we have helped them realize the gifts God has given them, putting them in the service of others.”

During his time as rector and chancellor, Msgr. Machalski said he was most proud of Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron naming the Orchard Lake Schools’ chapel the official archdiocesan shrine to St. John Paul II, a shrine the archbishop visited in the buildup to Synod 16, and the celebration of the 1,050th anniversary of Poland’s conversion to Christianity.

“The mission of what Orchard Lake Schools is about never changes, preparing students, either at the prep or seminary, to go out and spread the Gospel message,” Msgr. Machalski said. “To live out the mission of Orchard Lake Schools, service to God, Church or country, and their fellow human being. That is constant.”

Fr. Walter Ptak, dean of human formation at Orchard Lake Seminary, attended St. Mary’s College with Msgr. Machalski and said the monsignor’s experience as a parish priest helped the seminarians gain a greater understanding of what lies ahead in their ministry.

“He was very down-to-earth and approachable to the guys,” Fr. Ptak said. “To the seminarians, he served a fatherly role as rector. I think the seminary was blessed with a man who was able to bring his lived experience and sense of leadership style that wasn’t so evident in the past.”

Msgr. Machalski told The Michigan Catholic his time at Orchard Lake was made easier with the support of Archbishop Vigneron and now-retired Auxiliary Bishop Francis Reiss, who served as the archdiocesan liaison to the seminary, as well as other priests in the Archdiocese of Detroit.

“Looking back on my time here, I’m proud of the men we formed in the seminary, the students that graduated from our prep school, the state championships our teams won. But most of all, I’m proud I had the opportunity to continue the tradition of Orchard Lake Schools,” Msgr. Machalski said.

Msgr. Machalski said the Orchard Lake Schools’ Board of Regents has yet to decide on new rector or chancellor, or whether the position will be combined. Before Msgr. Machalski, the two prior chancellors weren’t rectors.