Ignatius Jerome Strecker

Ignatius Jerome Strecker (November 23, 1917 – October 16, 2003) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas from 1969 to 1993. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau in Missouri from 1962 to 1969.

Biography

Early life Ignatius Strecker was born on November 23, 1917, in Spearville, Kansas, to William and Mary (Knoeber) Strecker. He was baptized at St. John the Baptist Church in Spearville, where his parents were also the first couple to be married. He had a brother, Henry; and five sisters, Agnes, Catherine, Mary, Elizabeth, and Wilhelmina.

Strecker attended Maur Hill Prep School and Benedictine College, both in Atchison, Kansas. He then went to Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1992, Strecker denounced the pro-choice views of Kansas State Representative Kathleen Sebelius. He accused Sebelius, a Catholic, of leading "the death-march of the unborn to the abortion clinics in the House of Representatives" and "attempting to make the 'death-marches' to the abortion clinics as legal as the death-marches to the gas chambers of the World War II Holocaust."

Retirement and legacy After reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, Strecker resigned his post as archbishop of Kansas City on June 28, 1993, following 23 years of service. During that time, he earned the nickname of "Gracious Ignatius".

After a series of strokes and a fall, Ignatius Strecker died in Kansas City, Kansas, on October 16, 2003, at age 85.