Diocese Of Worcester Mourns Permanent Deacon Who Became A Priest

This piece of news caught my eye this morning, from The Catholic Free Press:

The funeral Mass for Father Paul W. Lemire was held Friday at St. Anne Church, 130 Boston Turnpike, Shrewsbury. Burial is in St. John’s Cemetery in Worcester.

Father Lemire, 79, senior priest in residence at St. Anne’s, died Saturday in UMass Memorial Medical Center-Memorial Campus in Worcester, surrounded by his family.

He is believed to be the Diocese’s only priest who was first a permanent deacon. He was ordained a permanent deacon in 1979.

When his wife, Mary, knew she was dying, they discussed his becoming a priest, according to Veronika Montiverdi, whose husband, Gerald, is a permanent deacon from the class of 1981.

“She knew that Paul was going to go on to be a priest after she died,” Mrs. Montiverdi said. “She was thrilled. … Ministry – that was Paul’s thing. … I know she was looking down from above on the day of his ordination. … Paul always carried her in his heart.”

He generously gave the Church many years, as a deacon, then as a priest, remarked Father Paul J. Tougas. When Father Tougas, now retired, directed the permanent diaconate program, Deacon Lemire was one of those who assisted him.

“If I encapsulated his life, I would say, ‘Here I am, Lord; I have come to serve,’” said Deacon Philip E. Devine, chaplain at North Central Correctional Institution in Gardner. “If you look at his life – he was a husband, a father, a grandfather, and … a teacher.”