Barely two years after being ordained a priest, Fr. Simon Lefebvre, CSV, found himself heading to Taiwan as a missionary to 
serve at the new St. Viator High School in Taichung, founded by Viatorians, in 1956.
Viatorian missions in Japan and Taiwan started during the 1950s, were a response to a plea nearly 30 years earlier by Pope Pius XI, who had asked the Viatorian Community to help spread the gospel in foreign lands.
Fr. Lefebvre worked as a teacher and chaplain in Taiwan for 14 years, and it turns out he made a lasting impact on his students.
For his 88th birthday this month, his former students now living in the United States joined him for a celebration. They included graduates from the classes of 1968, 1970 and 1971.
Fr. Lefebvre’s missionary spirit has served him well during his nearly 70 years as a Viatorian and nearly 60 as a priest.
During his years of religious life, he has taught at Viatorian schools in Quebec, Las Vegas, back in Taiwan and as a 
professor of Chinese at the University of San Diego, all before entering pastoral ministry at various parishes in the San Diego area.
His openness to serve — and ability to adapt to a new culture and language — has kept him young. Happy birthday, Fr. Si!
Birthday photos courtesy of Patrick Huang, ’71, former student of Fr. Lefebvre