Rev. Henry B. Maibusch, O.S.A.

Henry Bernard Maibusch was born May 15, 1928 in Chicago, Illinois to Henry C. and Regina (Handrup) Maibusch. Both of his parents were of German descent. His father was a painter and decorator. His mother was a homemaker. He was Baptized May 27, 1928 at St. Benedict Church, Chicago. He received the Sacrament of Confirmation October 22, 1940 at St. Philomena Church, Chicago.

He is a 1942 graduate of St. Philomena Elementary School, Chicago. In 1946, he graduated from St. Rita High School, Chicago. In the same year, he entered the Augustinian seminary program at Augustinian Academy, Staten Island, New York, where he did post-graduate studies.

Henry was received into the Novitiate September 9, 1947. He professed Simple Vows September 10, 1948 and Solemn Vows September 10, 1951. He was ordained a Priest by Bishop Raymond Hillenger May 29, 1954 at St. Clare Church, Chicago.

Father Maibusch holds a B. A. in Philosophy from Villanova University, Villanova, Pennsylvania (1951). He did his theological studies at Augustinian College, Washington, D.C. from 1951 to 1955. During those years, he also studied at Catholic University, Washington, which granted him an M. A. in German in 1955.

He was assigned in 1955 as a teacher at Austin Catholic High School, Detroit, Michigan. He was sent to St. Augustine Seminary, Holland, Michigan, in 1964. There he served as a teacher, business manager and Prior.

When St. Augustine Seminary closed in 1977, Father Maibusch remained there while serving as Chaplain to the Augustinian Cloistered Nuns, who had a house on the seminary property. When the Nuns relocated to St. Louis, Missouri in 1978, Father Maibusch accompanied them there and continued to serve for a short time as their Chaplain.

Later that same year, Father Maibusch was transferred to St. Monica Monastery, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. In 1979, he went to Holy Rosary Parish, Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he was Associate Pastor. He returned to St. Monica Monastery in 1983.

In 1987, he went back to Holy Rosary Parish, serving as Associate Pastor. When the Pastor became ill in 2001, Father Maibusch was named Administrator of Holy Rosary Parish.

After the Province withdrew from Holy Rosary Parish in 2002, he joined the Augustinian community of Bl. Stephen Bellesini (at St. Rita Parish) in nearby Racine, Wisconsin. There, he continued to provide sacramental ministries as needed in several southeastern Wisconsin parishes.

Declining health caused him to be assigned in January, 2014 to Bl. Stephen Bellesini Friary, Crown Point, Indiana, where he could receive the needed health care.

Father Maibusch thoroughly enjoyed the woods, lakes and streams of forested and rural settings. While at St. Augustine Seminary, located in the rolling dunes of western Michigan, he singlehandedly built a log cabin in the nearby woods.

Later, Father Maibusch helped his brother to build a two-story cabin on the shores of Petticoat Lake, near the town of Three Lakes in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. He enjoyed getting away to “Camp Maibusch” whenever possible.