The Catholic Business Journal welcomes Scott Turicchi as its newest columnist. He begins his columns not only with some faith and career highlights, but also with a first-person glimpse into his unique, on-the-ground experience the day that Poland lost its highest leaders in a tragic plane crash in Russia earlier this year. —ed.
by Scott Turicchi
Welcome to the new semi-recurring Turicchi column. As this is my first entry for the Catholic Business Journal, allow me a brief introduction. I have been a lifelong Catholic and one who is proud of the faith and the clear articulation of the teaching positions of the Church for those willing to invest the time to absorb the subtleties. I have been married for almost ten years and have three young daughters – that says it all.
Professionally, I have been in business for almost 25 years. The first 15 years were as an investment banker. During that tenure, I banked/advised a number of industries as well as participated in a variety of transaction types – mergers and acquisitions to initial public offerings. In 1997, I began to bank a young start up company named JFAX.com. They were an early participant in the emerging digital communications space. Over a three year period, we raised two rounds of financing including an $80 million initial public offering. I joined the board of directors and by early 2000 was negotiating to become a full time employee. In my 10 years at what is now know
n as j2 Global Communications, Inc., I have held a variety of positions including chief financial officer. Currently, I am the Company’s President with an emphasis on our acquisitions, corporate communications and regulatory matters.
Now that you have a brief background, let’s get to the heart of the article. In my corporate position, I find myself on the road with some regularity. Currently, my wife and I are on vacation in Europe. Our travels took us first to Krakow, Poland (we are currently in Rome). My wife has been producing a film about Pope John Paul II. In the course of her work, she has had the opportunity to interview Cardinal Dziwisz on four occasions. Our trip to Krakow was to conduct the last interview.
A few years ago I had an idea how to make travel relevant spiritually. As we know, travel can be tiring, distracting and take you away from family and loved ones. However it does provide opportunities for spiritual enrichment if we organize our time well. In short, turn all of your travel into little pilgrimages. I am not suggesting that each trip include a stay at a hostel and hours of daily prayer. What I am suggesting is that each trip can be an opportunity to visit a special shrine, the Cathedral or other local churches. While best if the visit can include participation in the sacraments, this is not necessary.
In Krakow, I had the opportunity to visit several places and spend some time in prayer at each. Near the main town square, there are two large churches – one run by the Dominicans and one by the Franciscans. A visit to each with Mass got the trip started. As this was Easter week and the feast of Divine Mercy was approaching, a short visit to Lagiewniki, where the basilica is located was also on the agenda. Also, we took a short trip to Nowa Huta – the model Communist city that was designed without a church. After many years of struggle and continuous intervention by then Archbishop Karol Wojtyla, the “Ark” was finally built. People come to this day to venerate the Cross that was the only religious symbol in Nowa Huta for years.
As wonderful as all those experiences were, the best was spending an hour in Wawel Cathedral almost alone. The Cathedral houses the mortal remains of St. Stanislaus. He was an 11th century saint who was martyred by the then Polish King Boleslaw II the Bold. He is the patron saint of Poland. Masses at the Cathedral are early in the morning before the tour groups begin to arrive (6:30, 7:00 and 7:30). They are celebrated at the numerous beautiful side altars. This morning, the 7:30 Mass was in front of the large crucifix. Unfortunately, there were only five people present for Mass including the priest, the lector, a nun and one accidental tourist. However, when Mass ended, it provided an opportunity to roam the Cathedral without interruption or loud crowds. Eventually, I made my way back to the entrance where the reliquary and altar to St. Stanislaus are located. For the next 20 minutes, I was able to meditate before his altar in this quiet Cathedral – a little slice of heaven.
Before closing this article, I must comment on the tragedy that occurred only two hours later. As we were touring around the city our driver reported the breaking news that a plane on the wa
y to Katyn carrying many important political and military leaders of Poland, including its President and his wife, had crashed. As the news continued, it became clear that there were no survivors. It turned out that we had a train that afternoon to Warsaw. The pictures below were taken in the early evening outside of the Presidential Palace in Warsaw. The pictures convey all that needs to be said. This is yet another unfortunate 
chapter in Polish history and one that has stunned a nation. Masses were celebrated in the Warsaw Cathedral of St. John late into the night. The only consolation is that this is a people that for the most part still believes in and turns to prayer. Maybe this is a lesson for the rest of us.
Until next time.
Scott