ON the last day of 2007 hundreds gathered in St Stephen’s Cathedral, Brisbane, to farewell Fr Denis Power.
Auxiliary Bishop Brian Finnigan of Brisbane presided at the requiem Mass alongside Fr Power’s brother and nephew from Ireland.
His brother Fr Nicholas Power has spent some months in Australia while his nephew Fr Milo Guiry had recently arrived.
In his homily, Brisbane archdiocese’s north coast dean Fr John Dobson recalled Fr Power’s many achievements including the foundation of Seton College in Mt Gravatt, on Brisbane’s southside, in 1964.
Sr Brigid Coakley, now deceased, of the Daughters of Charity, was Seton’s co-founder.
Principal for many years, Sr Marie Cantwell and former teacher Sr Rebecca Francis attended the Mass as representatives of the order.
Fr Power also assisted with the establishment of the then Kolbe College in Petrie in Brisbane’s north, now known as Mt Maria.
With a passion for social justice issues, Fr Power offered invaluable assistance on the Aboriginal reconciliation front.
Described as a “friend, advocate and champion” in a statement by Brisbane archdiocese’s Murri Ministry, Fr Power, when he was Rosalie parish priest, aided the establishment of a campsite used by families of the “Aboriginal apostolate”.
Born on March 4, 1921 in Waterford, Fr Power was ordained in Ireland on June 22, 1947 and arrived in Brisbane in April, 1948.
He also served as associate pastor in Coorparoo, Gympie and Ipswich, was founding parish priest of St Paul’s, East Mt Gravatt (no longer a parish) from 1955 to 1970 and parish priest of Rosalie for almost two decades from 1970.
Fr Power died in Nambour hospital on December 23, having retired to Currumundi, north of Brisbane, in 1999.
