By: By Jennifer Willems

GALESBURG — Patients, visitors and staff at OSF St. Mary Medical Center have a new place to pray and reflect, thanks to the generosity of Tillie Mangieri and her children.

Construction of the Mater Dei Chapel was made possible by the Mangieri siblings, who raised the money needed for the project in honor of their mother, a longtime volunteer at OSF St. Mary.

“Our goal was to come up with $75,000 and we ended up contributing $100,000,” said Mary (Mangieri) Burgland. “Our family believes in doing what we can to make the community a better place.”

The chapel, which seats about 40 people, features a stained glass window from the former St. Benedict Church in Ladd. Mass is celebrated at 7:30 a.m. Sunday through Friday and at 9 a.m. on Saturday. It is televised so patients can watch from their hospital beds.

The blessing and dedication took place four days before Tillie Mangieri’s 93rd birthday and Burgland said they were thrilled that she was able to attend and see how everything turned out.

A LONG ASSOCIATION
The family’s history with the Galesburg medical center goes back many years. Burgland got involved with the OSF St. Mary Auxiliary in the mid-1970s and reached out to her mother when it became clear more help was needed.

“My mother gave 100 percent to everything she did, so I knew she would be a perfect fit at the hospital,” Burgland said. “She is past president of the Auxiliary and volunteered in the surgical waiting area up until her mid-80s, when it just wasn’t safe for her to continue driving back and forth from Abingdon.”

Burgland added that her mother gave birth to all of her children at OSF St. Mary, “so it’s almost like home to her.”

The family also had a hand in starting the annual spaghetti dinner to benefit the Auxiliary, and the Mangieri’s secret spaghetti recipe still helps to raise funds nearly 40 years later.

Burgland has been on the Auxiliary Board and will soon be on the Area Wide Board, while her brother, Sam Mangieri Jr., was an Area Wide Board member. Their brother Joe Mangieri is a Foundation Board member.

Tina (Mangieri) Vujovich had been interested in making a donation to honor their mother and got involved when it was learned that a new chapel was needed at OSF St. Mary. Another sibling, Peter Mangieri, owns Mangieri Companies in Peoria, which was instrumental in building the chapel.
Tillie was given the honor of selecting the name for it and chose Mater Dei, which means “Mother of God” in Latin.

When asked why the family chose OSF St. Mary as its charity, Burgland said, “When you get to know the Sisters, you’ll do anything for them.”

The Galesburg medical center is part of OSF Healthcare System, which is owned and operated by The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis.