Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Priest jumps off bridge in Rhode Island
Telegram ^ | September 11, 2009 | Linda Bock

Posted on 09/12/2009 6:33:40 AM PDT by NYer

The Rev. Dennis J. Rocheford, 60, who became pastor at St. Ann Parish in North Oxford July 1, jumped to his death in Rhode Island yesterday morning, according to Rhode Island State Police.

“Our focus is on prayers for him, for his family and for his friends,” Raymond L. Delisle, spokesman for the Diocese of Worcester, said this morning.

Rev. Rocheford, a longtime military chaplain, was on leave from St. Ann's and also had been serving at the Chapel of Hope at the Navy Base in Newport, R.I., according to Mr. Delisle.

About 8 a.m. yesterday, state police in Rhode Island received a report that a man had jumped from the Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge. In addition to Newport and Rhode Island State Police, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Jamestown Navy-Marine Corps responded.

Authorities recovered the man's body in the water below the bridge. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to Rhode Island State Police Capt. James Swanberg. He said the man who jumped off the bridge was identified as Dennis Rocheford.

The Newport Bridge is the largest suspension bridge in New England and spans Narragansett Bay, connecting Newport and Jamestown.

Rev. Rocheford had been on a leave of absence from St. Ann's but still lived in the parish rectory when he was not at the Navy base. He was previously pastor of St. Theresa's Parish in Blackstone and for a time served as a priest assigned to assist clergy of the Diocese of Worcester charged with sexual misconduct.

Rev. Rocheford was born in South Weymouth and attended schools in Worcester. He graduated from South High School in 1967. He joined the Marine Corps and did a tour of duty in Vietnam. He attended St. John's Seminary in Brighton and was ordained a priest at St. Paul's Cathedral in Worcester by Bishop Bernard J. Flanagan in 1977. Rev. Rocheford's first assignment was to St. Camillus Parish in Fitchburg as associate pastor in 1977.

Other parishes in Central Massachusetts that he was appointed to include Sacred Heart in Hopedale in 1981 and St. Joan of Arc in Worcester in 1985. He studied Spanish at a seminary in the Dominican Republic before being appointed to St. Joan of Arc. Rev. Rocheford returned to military service in 1987. When he returned to the area in 1998, he was appointed to St. John the Evangelist in Clinton. In 2001, Rev. Rocheford was appointed administrator of St. Theresa's in Blackstone and became pastor in 2002.



TOPICS: Catholic; Moral Issues; Prayer
KEYWORDS: catholic; priest; rocheford
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-35 next last

1 posted on 09/12/2009 6:33:40 AM PDT by NYer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Salvation; narses; SMEDLEYBUTLER; redhead; Notwithstanding; nickcarraway; Romulus; ...

Prayerful ping!


2 posted on 09/12/2009 6:34:34 AM PDT by NYer ( "One Who Prays Is Not Afraid; One Who Prays Is Never Alone"- Benedict XVI)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer
When he returned to the area in 1998, he was appointed to St. John the Evangelist in Clinton.

As in Clinton, Maryland. My old parish back in the day.

3 posted on 09/12/2009 6:38:48 AM PDT by Senator Goldwater
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer

Poor man, no one knows the demons we all deal with. It’s sad to see a permanent solution to a temporary problem. RIP


4 posted on 09/12/2009 6:40:04 AM PDT by muir_redwoods (Buck Ofama!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer

May God rest his soul. And may he find the peace in eternity he sought in life.


5 posted on 09/12/2009 6:43:52 AM PDT by BigCinBigD (Remember. There's no "U" in Government.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer

Dear God,Prayers for his family and friends.


6 posted on 09/12/2009 7:49:39 AM PDT by fatima (Free Hugs Today :))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: NYer
The most sincere prayers filled with HOPE for this Servant of God who felt all was lost! We may never be entitled to know what devils persued him, but we can pray that they are banished away from any other who has given so much!
7 posted on 09/12/2009 8:02:05 AM PDT by AKA Elena (St Michael the Archangel defend us in Battle -- and this is war!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: NYer

RIP.


8 posted on 09/12/2009 8:44:47 AM PDT by LdSentinal
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer
Wow! I knew him. He was my battalion chaplain in the late 80s. He was the best chaplain that I ever served with (and there were many over a 20 year period). Before becoming a priest, he served in Vietnam during Tet as a radio operator (a billet that was certain to make you a high value target in combat). He had more combat ribbons than most officers that served during the same period. He was the kindest and gentlest person I ever met that had backbone made of iron. Everyone that came into contact with him admired him and sought his advise. I cannot imagine what would cause him to do this, but it must have been significant.
9 posted on 09/12/2009 10:18:06 AM PDT by fini
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: fini

Thank you for the testimonial on Fr. Rocheford. The Vietnam war took a serious toll on many. Could this have been a latent reaction? If you learn more, would you please ping me? Would appreciate it.


10 posted on 09/12/2009 10:38:12 AM PDT by NYer ( "One Who Prays Is Not Afraid; One Who Prays Is Never Alone"- Benedict XVI)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: Senator Goldwater
As in Clinton, Maryland. My old parish back in the day.

There's also a parish by the same name in Clinton Massachusetts, and that's probably the one they're referring to.

Coincidence?

Where the Clintons are involved, who can say?

11 posted on 09/12/2009 10:43:45 AM PDT by x
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: NYer
Thank you for your concern. If I find out I will send you a note. I could write pages on things that he did or said that made him stand out from the others. But I will sum it up by saying that whenever a bunch of us from the old days talk about him we all are unanimous in saying that he was the best. If Viet Nam was the cause, he hid it well. As I mentioned earlier, he was a radio operator during Tet and the officer he carried the radio for later became a general (a very good general by the way), so I don't think his problem was related to anything he did in Viet Nam. He was a Franciscan, so he took a vow of poverty and he lived it- his car was literally falling apart. Several years later I say him at Parris Island (one of two Marine Corps Boot Camps). He was just as humble and kind as he was while in 3rd Bn 8th Marines (He also had a very good sense of humor). I just pray that: 1) there was a chemical imbalance (which made in unstable); and most importantly 2) God takes mercy on his soul.
12 posted on 09/12/2009 11:45:23 AM PDT by fini
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: fini

Why do people think it is always Vietnam?


13 posted on 09/12/2009 12:22:14 PM PDT by gman992
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: NYer

The poor man. How very, very sad.


14 posted on 09/12/2009 12:26:19 PM PDT by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer

God have mercy on his soul.

Lord, we ask not to count the suicide against this brave man.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, amen.


15 posted on 09/12/2009 12:26:57 PM PDT by annalex (http://www.catecheticsonline.com/CatenaAurea.php)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: fini

Thank you so much for sharing your memories of Rev. Rocheford.


16 posted on 09/12/2009 12:30:10 PM PDT by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: NYer

Sad. RIP.


17 posted on 09/12/2009 1:22:16 PM PDT by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer

Prayers lifted.


18 posted on 09/12/2009 2:40:06 PM PDT by TASMANIANRED (TAZ:Untamed, Unpredictable, Uninhibited.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NYer
How very sad. He sounds like he was quite a guy. He looks the way priests looked in movies from the '40s and '50s. In fact, he looks a little like the actor Pat O'Brien.

May God have mercy on his soul.

19 posted on 09/12/2009 3:09:01 PM PDT by Oratam
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: fini

Prayers going up for him. RIP.


20 posted on 09/12/2009 8:31:00 PM PDT by Domestic Church (AMDG)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-35 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson