Celebrating Br. Oscar Andrejasic, SDB's Vocation

By Amy Marinaro

Br. Oscar Andrejasic was born in 1914 in Yugoslavia. During his childhood, his family moved to Italy. In 1931 Oscar joined the formation center for coadjutor brothers, where he learned toolmaking and designing. He professed his perpetual vows with the Salesians in 1942 and began working as a teacher in a technical school in Turin.

In 1946, Fr. Ernest Giovannini, the provincial of the New Rochelle Province, wanted to open the first Salesian technical school in the United States. So he invited a group of eight coadjutor brothers from Italy to assist him. Br. Oscar was one of the men who answered yes to this missionary call. In 1948, a silk mill in Paterson, NJ, was purchased, and after much hard renovation work, Don Bosco Technical High School was opened in 1949. Although Br. Oscar also worked at the Don Bosco Tech in Boston, MA, and the aspirantate for coadjutors in Haverstraw, NY, he spent 35 years of his life teaching in Paterson.

Br. Oscar had a profound impact on the young men he taught in Paterson. He was recognized by his students as someone who was close to God. He was well-loved by his students and confreres and deeply admired for his faith. Bro. Oscar passed away in 1990.

Based on the biography of Br. Oscar Andrejasic included in Short Sketches of the Lives of Salesians Who Worked in the Province of St. Philip the Apostle during the 100 Years from 1898 to 1998 by Fr. Philip J. Pascucci, SDB (New Rochelle, 1998), pp. 7-8.

Photo credit: Don Bosco Tech Tradewinds 1981