August 24, 2024 – Kewaskum, WI – We regret to inform of the passing of our Capuchin brother Elroy Pesch, OFM Cap. on Wednesday, August 21, 2024.
Ralph John Pesch was born on November 13, 1936, in Campbellsport, Wisconsin, to Elroy and Theresa (Hammes) Pesch.
At the age of 13, Elroy overheard his aunt Laura telling a neighbor that she wouldn’t be surprised if he became a priest. Inspired, Elroy approached his pastor and informed his parents of his desire to pursue the priesthood. Five weeks later, he enrolled at St. Lawrence Seminary in Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin. At age fourteen, Elroy became a Third Order member and received a rosary from Cyprian Abler, which he cherished and wore throughout his life.
Elroy received his religious name when he entered the novitiate in Detroit at St. Bonaventure Monastery, being invested on August 31, 1954. Following his First Profession on September 1, 1955, he continued his post-novitiate formation as a cleric at St. Felix Monastery in Huntington, Indiana, and made his final vows on September 1, 1958. He furthered his ministry formation at St. Anthony Monastery in Marathon, Wisconsin.
On September 6, 1962, Elroy was ordained a deacon, and on April 20, 1963, he was ordained a priest by Bishop John P. Treacy at St. Mary Church in Marathon, Wisconsin. After ordination, he was assigned to St. Elizabeth Friary in Milwaukee for the summer and spent a pastoral year at St. Francis Friary, also in Milwaukee.
In June 1964, Elroy was appointed Math professor at the Capuchin Seminary of St. Mary in Crown Point, Indiana, where he joined the faculty in their teaching ministry. From 1964 until 1967, he pursued a doctorate in Philosophy at Fordham University in the Bronx, New York. During that period, he also served as a chaplain at St. Anthony Hospital in Milwaukee in 1966.
From 1967 to 2003, Elroy was a beloved professor, prefect, and faculty member at St. Lawrence Seminary in Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin. In 1987, he took a sabbatical for renewal, which included time at the Franciscan Institute in Santa Barbara, California, a pilgrimage to Assisi, a visit to the Shrine of St. Fidelis in Germany, and spending time at every friary in the province.
Upon returning to ministry in 1988, Elroy wrote to his superior, “I have built my spiritual life on my vow of obedience, and I assure you that I would accept anything you assign me without complaint or opposition… Whatever you decide, I know the Holy Spirit will have had a hand in it. God has always taken the best possible care of me.” Elroy continued to serve as a maintenance staff member at St. Lawrence Seminary.
Elroy was a true outdoorsman. He was an avid huntsman and a lucky fisherman. Every November, he would make his way to the friar’s cabin in Eau Pleine, Wisconsin, to enjoy time hunting with his family.
In 2003, after suffering a stroke, Elroy entered semi-retirement but remained actively involved in assisting the local Church with parish help-outs. Reflecting on his diamond jubilee (2015), Elroy remarked, “My vocation has been the greatest blessing God gave me. May I never disappoint him!”
Besides his ministry at St. Lawrence Seminary, Elroy served the Church and his fraternity in many ways. Elroy was celebrated for over fifty years of dedicated service in parish help-outs at his home parish (St. Bridget, St. Matthias, St. Michael, and Holy Trinity) in Kewaskum, Wisconsin. Elroy was also dedicated in his service to Villa Loretto, a skilled nursing facility in Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin, where he would administer the sacraments. Elroy celebrated daily and Sunday masses at Villa Loretto from 1980 until he entered full-time retirement in 2018.
In 2023, Elroy moved to specialized care. He was admitted to hospice care in August of 2024, where he died peacefully on Wednesday, August 21, 2024.
Elroy is preceded in death by his parents, Elroy and Theresa (Hammes) Pesch, and his brother Harold. He is survived by his sisters Arlene and Carol, his brothers Andrew and Kenneth, his many nieces and nephews, and a brotherhood of Capuchins with whom he lived, prayed, and ministered for seven decades.
The Liturgy of Christian burial will be celebrated at the St. Lawrence Seminary Chapel, 301 Church Street Mount Calvary, WI 53057 on Saturday, August 24, 2024 at 11:00 AM. Fr. Elroy will be laid to rest at the Mount Calvary Friary Cemetery.
Visitation: Family and friends may visit with Fr. Elroy’s family on Saturday, August 24, 2024 from 9:30 AM-10:45 AM at the St. Lawrence Seminary Chapel.
For further details, please contact the Sippel Funeral Home in St. Cloud (920) 999-2291 or visit www.sippelfuneralhome.net
