Brother William J. Cushing

Brother William J. Cushing, C.F.X., age 81, died in hospice care on Monday morning, June17, 2024 at the Masconomet Healthcare Center in Topsfield. He was a member of the Congregation of the Brothers of Saint Francis Xavier for sixty-three years. Born in Worcester on April 16, 1943, he was the son of the late Leo and Veronica (McColley) Cushing. He was raised and educated in Worcester and was a 1961 graduate of Saint John’s High School. He entered the Xaverian Brothers the following July and on September 8, 1961 received the holy habit, taking the religious name Brother Henry. He began his undergraduate studies at Xaverian College in Silver Spring, MD and received his bachelor’s degree from Catholic University in 1967. Two master’s degrees followed, first from Fairleigh-Dickenson University in 1968 and another from the Immaculate Conception School of Theology in Darlington, NJ in 1980. Over the years, his postgraduate studies included stints at Ball State University, Montclair State College, Boston College, the Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem, Manhattan College, and the Maryknoll Mission Institute in Nairobi, Kenya. In 1967, Brother William was assigned to Saint Joseph Regional High School in Montvale, NJ where he would remain for thirty years. From 1993-1997, he served as headmaster of the school. After three decades at Montvale, Brother William answered the missionary call of the Xaverian Brothers, leading him to teach scripture for most of the next twenty years at Christ the King Major Seminary in Nyeri, Kenya. In 2017, he retired to his alma mater, Saint John’s High School, which had moved to Shrewsbury just after his own graduation, and in 2023 he joined the community at Xaverian House in Danvers. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by a brother, John Cushing. Brother William’s Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, June 21, 2024 at 11AM in the Saint John’s Preparatory School Chapel, 72 Spring St., Danvers. Burial will follow in Xaverian Brothers Cemetery. Visitation will be prior to the Mass from 10-10:45AM in the Chapel. In lieu of flowers, donations in Brother William’s memory may be made to the Xaverian Brothers Retirement Fund, 4409 Frederick Ave., Baltimore, MD 21229. Arrangements are by C.R. Lyons & Sons Funeral Directors, 28 Elm St., Danvers Square. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.LyonsFuneral.com.