A Mass of Christian Burial was held on March 3 at St. Anthony Church in Butler for Franciscan Father John Joseph Pierce of St. Anthony Friary there. He died on Feb. 22 at 93 years old after an extended illness. He was a professed Franciscan Friar for 66 years and a Catholic priest for 61 years.
A native of Melrose, Mass., Father Pierce was born in 1932 to Ralph and Frances (Mutty) Pierce. In his early years, he was known for his athleticism, exhibiting his collegiate football prowess at St. Bonaventure University in western New York State and St. Michael’s College in Vermont.
Father Pierce entered the Franciscan order in 1957. He professed his first vows in 1958 and final vows as a Franciscan Friar of Holy Name Province in 1961. Concurrently, he pursued theological studies in Washington, D.C.
In 1963, Father Pierce was ordained a priest in Washington. He later earned a Master of Divinity degree from Seton Hall University in South Orange.
Father Pierce volunteered as a U.S. Navy Chaplain, attaining the rank of lieutenant and serving with the First Marine Division in Vietnam from 1968 to 1970. He was awarded the Bronze Star medal in 1970.
Returning stateside, Father Pierce served in Franciscan parishes in East Paterson (now Elmwood Park), Garfield, Fair Lawn, Wood-Ridge, and West Milford. He later served in Obernburg, N.Y., and St. Anthony Hospital in Warwick, N.Y., as a chaplain.
In retirement, due to medical needs, Father Pierce had been living at the New Jersey Veterans Administration Hospital in Lyons since 2019.
Father Pierce is survived by his Franciscan confreres in Our Lady of Guadalupe Province (USA) and by nephews and nieces in the greater Boston, Mass., area.
He was predeceased by his brothers, Ralph Pierce and Dana Pierce; his sisters, Miriam Frances Pierce Scully, Priscilla A. McNally, and Estelle Pierce Burton; and a nephew, Gerard Pierce.
Father Pierce’s burial took place at Mount Calvary Cemetery in Butler.
