Aquinas College's chaplain, the Rev. Charles Santoro, O.P., who passed away unexpectedly on August 3, will be remembered in two events on campus.

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A prayer service will be held on August 12 at 4 p.m. in the Bukowski Chapel followed by a memorial Mass to be held in the fall once students have returned for classes. Details about the Mass are to be determined.

The service will give members of the Aquinas community a chance to celebrate and to remember their good friend. Santoro was well-liked by the student body, who honored him with the school spirit award each year since his arrival on campus. His relentless support of Aquinas' sports teams and his ecumenical teachings earned the Rev. Santoro a great deal of respect and appreciation among students and staff.

Santoro had been treated for prostate cancer in July and was progressing well after surgery. He was later hospitalized for an infection and had returned home when he suffered a blood clot in the heart. He collapsed and died in his home just after returning from the hospital. He was 60 years old.

Since 2002, the Rev. Santoro, a Dominican, served as chaplain at Aquinas. He was buried Monday, August 9 in a Minneapolis, Minn. Dominican cemetery.