By Elizabeth Lowe
Twitter: @ReviewLowe
Deacon C. Richard Swann, a retired deacon who served St. Joseph, Odenton, for more than 25 years, died Aug. 18. He was 90.
A funeral Mass will be offered at 10 a.m. Aug. 27 at St. Joseph, Odenton. He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.
Deacon Swann had been a member of the U.S. Marine Corps for more than 20 years, said Father William L. Viola, pastor of St. Joseph, Odenton.
Before becoming a deacon in the 1980s, Deacon Swann was a parishioner of the Odenton parish and “very instrumental in building this community,” Father Viola said. “He was very central to this community.”
As part of his ministry, Deacon Swann visited ill parishioners at home and in the hospital and held weekly luncheons for widows and widowers, Father Viola said.
“His greatest contribution was his sense of kindness and compassion for others,” Father Viola said.
Deacon Swann’s wife, Dorris, predeceased him, Father Viola said. The couple has two daughters, a son and “a number of” grandchildren.
“When I came here he was very supportive,” Father Viola said. “He’s going to be very much missed.”
Copyright (c) Aug. 21, 2012 CatholicReview.org