It’s quite well known that the history of Tres Dias dates back to the Catholic Cursillo Movement, and that the first Tres Dias weekend was held at the Oblate House in Newburgh, NY in 1972. What is NOT well known are the people who were instrumental in bringing about this movement.
During our 35th Anniversary Celebration in July, 2007, we took the opportunity to fly Dave McManigal from his Midwest home to the Mid Hudson Valley so he could be part of the Celebration. Dave was the Rector of the first men’s weekend in November, 1972, and the one universally recognized as the instigator of Tres Dias. At some point IBM transferred Dave to the midwest so he lost contact with the Tres Dias ministry. He expressed immense surprise when he learned that the ministry he helped start is now worldwide with over 100 chartered or emerging communities. What follows are his recollections. NOTE: He did ask that we include the caveat that these recollections “derive from the memory of a fallible senior citizen 35 years after the fact!”