Courtesy photo. A Mass of the Ressurrection will be held 11 a.m. Tuesday for the Rev. Francis J. Browne, of Sacred Heart R.C. Church of New Smyrna Beach, who died Thursday. He was 66.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- A Mass of the Resurrection for Rev. Francis J. Browne, C.Ss.R., 66, who died Thursday, June 18, 2009 will be concelebrated at 11 a.m. Tuesday, at Sacred Heart R.C. Church.
A Christian Wake service will be 7 p.m. Monday, at Sacred Heart. Burial will be Saturday, in Mt. St. Alphonsus Cemetery, Esopus, N.Y.
Father Browne, the pastor at Sacred Heart Catholic Church since 2003, was born in Kingston, N.Y. He took his vows of profession on Aug. 2, 1962, and was ordained a redemptorist priest on June 23, 1968, at Mt. St. Alphonsus Seminary in Esopus.
Father Browne spoke fluent Spanish and was very proud of his Irish heritage. He was a parochial vicar at Most Holy Redeemer Parish in New York City; pastor of St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Philadelphia, Pa.; Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, Brooklyn, N.Y.; and St. Patrick's Church, Enfield, Conn., from 2002, until becoming pastor at Sacred Heart. Father was on a renewal sabbatical at the Redemptorist House of Prayers in Arizona and doing Mission work in Guadalajara, Mexico, completing his Sabbatical in Marianella, Ireland.
He is survived by one sister, Kathleen "Kam" Doetzer, Lake George, NY; and several nephews and nieces.