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Mill Hill Missionaries (2)
The Mill Hill Missionaries were based in Brixen, then a part of Austria and now part of Italy, in the Tirol region. The first batch of eight missionaries left Brixen on July 6, 1906 for the port of Genoa, Italy and on January 8, boarded the Isla de Luzon arriving in Manila on February 9.
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On February 13, they boarded a government coast guard vessel offered by Gov. Gen. Henry Ide and arrived in the port of Iloilo on February 16.There they were received by Fr. Pedro Trono, parish priest of Jaro Cathedral sent by Bishop Frededrick L. Rooker.
These first MHM were led by their superior, Rev Fr Jules Felix Verbrugge, who earlier served in Sandakan, North Borneo. They were: Benedict Pundleider, Max Moriz Abler, Walter Caine, James Cleven, Bernard Creemers, John Gfoeler (Foller) and Anthony Franciscus Smale.
After establishing its mother house in Arevalo, the MHM sent the following missionaries to their assigned parishes:
Frs. Max Moriz Abler, Benedict Pundleider and Anthony Franciscus Smale, jointly to Anini-y, Antique in 1906 but because the church and convent there were occupied by the Aglipayans, the three settled at Casay.
A month later, Fr Pundleider was assigned to nearby Dao, Antique which he described as "consisting of about 8,000 Catholics with around 1,000 Aglipayans returning to Catholic Chruch." On December of that year (1906), Smale died leaving Abler alone in Casay.
Fr. Walter Cain to Maasin, Iloilo in 1906 where he established an elementary school.
Fr. James Cleven to Hamtic, Antique in 1906.
Fr. Bernard Creemers to San Miguel, Iloilo in 1906; and
Fr. John Gfoeller (Foller) to Patnongon, Antique in 1907; however for lack of priests, he was also assigned jointly to nearby parishes of Sibalom, San Pedro, San Remigio and Valderama.