Obituary: Fr. Leroy Owens, Beloved Pastor at St. Edward's Church, Medfield

Fr. Leroy E. Owens Obituary

Rev. Leroy E. Of Falmouth, MA, died peacefully, after a brief illness, on January 1. He was 90 years old.

Fr. Leroy was born in Brockton, MA, to Leroy and Mary (Smith) Owens. He grew up in Whitman. His family attended Holy Ghost Parish, where he was encouraged in his faith by Fr. John Roche. Fr. Leroy entered the seminary in 1956 and was ordained by Archbishop Cardinal Cushing at the Holy Cross Cathedral 1964. His first assignment was to St. Joseph's Parish in Kingston, MA. In 1969, he was
assigned to Our Lady Help of Christians in Newton, MA, where his ability of relating to and working with young people flourished. He was a faculty member, chaplain, and athletic director. The 14-year assignment at Newton made him a legend at the parish, where he returned regularly to perform baptisms and weddings. Fr. Leroy began an eight-year appointment at Marian High School in Framingham and served at St. Bridget's Parish until 1996.

In 1996, he was named pastor at St. Edward the Confessor in Medfield. As pastor, he continued to build on this active parish with their many ministries and lay involvement, where he actively encouraged and built on the vibrant lay leadership in the parish. In 2014, Fr. Leroy was named senior priest in residency at St. Linus Church in Natick. The pastor at St. Patrick's Parish in the Natick Collaborative, Fr. Mike McEwan, who was Fr. Leroy's friend and once an altar boy for Fr. Leroy, asked him to come to Natick.

After retiring at the age of 87, Fr. Leroy continued his ministry at the Quarterdeck Restaurant in Falmouth, his last "parish." He leaves his sisters, Kathleen McCavitt and Anne Owens; and his brother, Paul Owens; many nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews and great-great-nephew. He was predeceased by his parents; his brother, Robert Owens; his brother-in-law, John McCavitt; and sister-in-law, Louise Owens.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, January 8, from 3:00 - 7:00 pm, at Chapman Funerals & Cremations, 475 Main Street, FALMOUTH. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on January 9, at 1:00 pm, at St. Anthony's Church, 167 E. Falmouth Hwy., East Falmouth.

Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Catholic Charities or St. Joseph's
Parish, St. Vincent de Paul's Society. Chapman Funerals & Cremations Falmouth, chapmanfuneral.com