Cardinal Edward Egan was well known as a persuasive fundraiser for Roman Catholic causes. Now, those causes will benefit from the generosity of the former archbishop of New York, who died in early March at the age of 82. In his will, filed last week in Manhattan Surrogate Court, Cardinal Egan directed $100,000 each to St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan and to the New York Archdiocese’s residence for retired priests in the Bronx’s Riverdale neighborhood. Before his retirement as archbishop in 2009, Cardinal Egan developed a plan to repair the cathedral, according to the current archbishop, Cardinal Timothy Dolan. The restoration will cost $170 million, Cardinal Dolan has said. The estate of Cardinal Egan was valued at $1.5 million, which includes at least $525,000 in cash, plus artwork, chalices, rings and crosses. A former priest-secretary of Cardinal Egan, the Rev. Douglas Y. Crawford, said the late cardinal’s wealth was inherited; his siblings and parents predeceased him. Cardinal Egan was also what Father Crawford described as “parsimonious.” “He would never waste money nor waste anyone else’s money,” said Father Crawford, who received a $25,000 gift from Cardinal Egan, a piece of artwork and a 14th-century prayer book, according to the will.
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And today we celebrate...