A priestly life starts at 79

William R. Schumacher is living proof that George Burns is notthe only octogenarian actively pursuing a career.

On June 4, the lifelong Chicagoan, widower, grandfather andretired businessman will be ordained a Roman Catholic priest, just 24days shy of his 80th birthday.

"In all likelihood, this man may be the oldest priest ordainedin the United States," said the Rev. John Tracy Ellis, a noted churchhistorian at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Schumacher, a sharp, witty man whose only physical ailment is anarthritic knee, doesn't think his age is a big deal, however.

"My goal is to call back those who have fallen away, …