FR. ROBERT J. BEDARD, CC
Passed away peacefully surrounded by the prayers and presence of the
Companions of the Cross,
Servants of the
Cross and friends at Carlingview
Manor on October 6,
2011 in his 83rd year. Fr. Bob was born in
Ottawa on July 17, 1929, attending primary school at
Corpus Christi and high school at
St. Patrick's College, graduating in 1948. He attended
St. Augustine's Seminary in
Toronto from 1951-55 and was ordained to the priesthood June 6,
1955 at his home parish of
Blessed Sacrament. His first parish assignment was at
Assumption Parish in
Vanier from July 1955 until September
1958. His first teaching assignment was at
St. Pius X Preparatory Seminary in 1958. He was made the principal there in
1961 and continued teaching at St. Pius X
High School for twenty years. Fr. Bob was appointed official Ottawa Archdiocesan Liaison to the
Charismatic Renewal by then Archbishop Plourde from 1975-78. He founded the Ottawa
Renewal Centre and launched the Lamplighter newsletter from 1982-84. He spoke at many conferences on topics such as parish renewal and the
Blessed Virgin Mary from 1982-84
. In the fall of
1984 he was appointed pastor of
St. Mary's Parish, Ottawa. In May of
1985 he founded the Companions of the Cross, a community of priests and seminarians.
The Companions were established as a
Society of Apostolic Life by decree of then Archbishop
Marcel Gervais in May
2003. In May of
1990, Fr. Bob began devoting himself full-time to the leadership of the Companions of the Cross. In
1992 he began co-hosting the television program
Food for Life. On
September 28,
1997 he was awarded the
Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross by Archbishop Gervais in the name of
Pope John Paul II. Fr. Bob was a pioneer in parish renewal and the new evangelization. He will be greatly missed by the community of priests and seminarians that he founded, as well as the Servants of the Cross and the many lay associates of the Companions of the Cross. He is predeceased by his parents
Henry and Eileen Bedard and by his first cousin
Jean Starrs. He is survived by his first cousins
Catherine Starrs,
Shirley McKenna (Gerroid),
Audrey Kost and
Elizabeth Coughtrey (
Bruce). The Companions of the Cross community would like to thank the staff at Carlingview Manor and Fr. Bob's personal care team.
Visitation at
St. Mary's Church,
100 Young St., Ottawa, on Tuesday,
October 11 from 10:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m
. and again from 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. The wake will include the prayer of the Rosary at 12:00 p.m.,
Divine Mercy devotions at 3:00 p.m. and a
Vigil service at 7:30 p.m.
Funeral Mass at
Notre Dame Cathedral-Basilica, 385
Sussex Dr., Ottawa, on Wednesday,
October 12 at 2:00 p.m. Committal to follow at
Hope Cemetery, 4660
Bank St. Donations to the Companions of the Cross in lieu of flowers, 199
Bayswater Ave.,
Ottawa, ON K1Y 2G5. www.companionscross.org www.kellyfh.ca
- published: 14 Oct 2011
- views: 2663