Chicago, IL (June 15, 2016) – Rev. Joseph Francis McDonnell passed away on Wednesday, June 15, 2016. He was the Pastor Emeritus of St. John of the Cross Parish in Western Springs. Fr. McDonnell was 88 years old.
Fr. McDonnell was born in Chicago on June 2, 1928. He attended Visitation and St. Brendan Schools in Chicago, as well as Quigley Preparatory Seminary. Fr. McDonnell graduated from the University of St. Mary of the Lake / Mundelein Seminary and was ordained into the priesthood on May 3, 1955, by Samuel Cardinal Stritch, Archbishop of Chicago.
Fr. McDonnell faithfully ministered to the people of Chicago for over forty years. He served as Assistant Pastor at Our Lady of Angels in Chicago (1955-62); St. Rene Goupil Parish in Chicago (1962-67); Our Lady of Grace Parish in Chicago (1967-68); Assumption B.V.M. Parish on California Avenue (1968-76); and St. Beatrice Parish in Schiller Park (1976-80). While Assistant Pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish, Fr. McDonnell also served as Chaplain at Cook County Jail. In 1980, Fr. McDonnell was named Pastor of St. John of the Cross Parish in Western Springs, and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1996, when he became Pastor Emeritus.
Rev. Terry Keehan, Pastor of Holy Family Parish in Inverness, got to know Fr. McDonnell while a resident of St. John of the Cross Parish. Fr. Keehan reflected, “I was with him for eight years and during that time I just learned so much from him about being present to people.” He continued, “Fr. McDonnell was courageous. He was candid and he connected so powerfully with people.”
Rev. Elliott Dees, currently studying at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, will be the main celebrant at Fr. McDonnell’s
Funeral Mass. He had many kind words to say about Fr. McDonnell, “It’s hard to put into words what Fr. McDonnell meant to me, my family and countless other families, friends and parishioners throughout the years.
He played a significant role in my own vocation; he vested me at my priesthood ordination and has been a support during my first five years of priesthood.” Fr. Dees continued, “His example of generous self-giving and joyful service to our Lord and His Church brought so many into a deeper relationship with Christ. He gave of himself each and every day and if there was anything that he could do to be of help to others, he would do it. To know Fr. McDonnell was to be a better person for the experience. He was one of the most compassionate, prayerful and loving priests and men I have known. His sense of humor and his love for life were infectious and he was himself to the very end.”
Rev. David P. Dowdle, Pastor of St. John of the Cross Parish in Western Springs, shared a memory of Fr. McDonnell. “At the end of every Mass, during the final blessing, Fr. McDonnell would say ‘May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,’ and when the congregation responded ‘Thanks be to God,’ he would follow that with “And have a good time doing it!’” Fr. Dowdle continued, “His first assignment at Our Lady of the Angels and the fire of 1958 impacted him greatly.” Fr. McDonnell is remembered for his regular visits to the surviving children in the hospital, supporting their family members and encouraging the doctors and nurses.
Fr. Dowdle added, “He cared for all children very deeply. He always called children up around the altar at every Mass he celebrated and in honor of him, we had a statue commissioned and dedicated to him in the Parish courtyard. It is a statue of Jesus with children around him.”
Fr. McDonnell will lie in state on Thursday, June 16, from 3 to 8 p.m.,at St. John of the Cross Parish, 5005 Wolf Road in Western Springs. ALiturgical Wake Service will take place at 7:45 p.m. Visitation will continue on Friday morning, June 17, from 9 to 10:45 a.m., at Holowell and James Funeral Home, 301 75th Street in Downers Grove, followed by the Funeral Mass at 11:15 a.m., at St. John of the Cross Parish. Fr. Elliott Dees will be the main celebrant.
Interment will take place at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Alsip.
Fr. McDonnell is survived by his nieces and nephews.