Brother John F. O'Brien
August 17, 1926 ~ November 6, 2015
Brother John Francis O’Brien, C.F.X., a brother in the Congregation of the Brothers of Saint Francis Xavier for seventy-one years, died unexpectedly on November 6, 2015 at the University of Louisville Hospital.
Born in Worcester on August 17, 1926, he was the son of the late Thomas and Anna (McCarthy) O’Brien. He was raised and educated in Worcester and was a graduate of Sacred Heart Academy, Class of 1944. Following graduation, he entered the Xaverian Brothers and on March 19, 1945, received the holy habit, taking the religious name Brother Brice. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and later earned a master’s degree in library science from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
His teaching apostolate began in 1950 at Bishop Flaget High School in Louisville, then took him to St. John’s Preparatory School in Danvers, Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx, Malden Catholic High School in two assignments, St. John’s High School in Worcester and later when the school was relocated to Shrewsbury, Bishop Fenwick High School in Peabody, St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkshill, NY, and St. Peter’s College in NJ. Brother John then served as archivist and then vice-chancellor for the Diocese of Monterey in California in the nineties. While in this position, he was named a Knight in the Equestrian Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre and installed by the then Archbishop Quinn at St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco in 1995. The following year he was promoted to Knight Commander for extraordinary services rendered to the Diocese of Monterey. Following his retirement in 2001, he moved in the Xaverian Brothers community in Venice, FL, where he established the archives program for the Blessed Edmund Rice School of Pastoral Ministry, a satellite campus of Barry University in Miami. This spring, Brother John moved to the Brothers community at Ryken House in Louisville.
In addition to his brothers in religion, Brother John leaves his sisters, Kathleen Kirby of Sun City, FL, Margaret Lynch of Shrewsbury, as well as several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by a sister, Eileen Luukko.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Monday, November 16, 2015 at 3PM in the Chapel of Saint John’s Preparatory School, 72 Spring Street, Danvers. Burial will follow in the Xaverian Brothers Cemetery. Visitation will be prior to the Mass beginning at 2PM. In lieu of flowers, donations in Brother John’s memory may be made to the Xaverian Brothers Retirement Fund, 4409 Frederick Ave, Baltimore, MD 21229.
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Brother Brice was a tremendously gifted English teacher at Malden Catholic High School. I consider myself very lucky to have been his student. I have used all the skills and knowledge learned in his class throughout my career. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and fellow Xaverian Brothers. – United States Senator Edward J. Markey