HOLYOKE - Reverend Roland J. H. Galipeau, KHS, 75, the retired Pastor of the former Holy Cross Church in Holyoke, was Called Safely Home on Wednesday evening, January 23, 2013. He passed into Eternal Life at Wingate at South Hadley surrounded by the care and comfort of his loving family and his wonderful caregivers. He was born in Holyoke on August 12, 1937, a beloved son of the late Henri J. and Ettie M. (Hache) Galipeau. He was raised in Holyoke, was a communicant of the former Precious Blood Church and graduated from the former Precious Blood Elementary and High Schools. His parents later settled in the Willimansett section of Chicopee where they became communicants of the former Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church. In 1956, he enrolled at Saint Hyacinth Seminary in Saint Hyacinth, Province of Quebec, Canada. He furthered his studies at the Seminary of Philosophy in Montreal, Canada and then entered the Grand Seminary in Montreal where he received a Bachelor's Degree in Theology. On May 9, 1964, he was Ordained a Priest in the Diocese of Springfield at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in the Willimansett section of Chicopee by the Most Reverend Christopher J. Weldon, DD, Bishop of Springfield. Upon his Ordination, he was assigned (pro tem) at Saint Peter's Church in Great Barrington and later at Holy Family Church in Holyoke. He then served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Anne Church in the Fairview section of Chicopee, Notre Dame Church in Easthampton, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Ware, Saint Thomas Aquinas Church in Springfield, and Notre Dame Church in North Adams. In 1978, he was named Administrator at Precious Blood Church in Holyoke and in 1979, was named Pastor. In 1984, Precious Blood Church merged with Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Holyoke where he then served as Pastor of the two Parishes. In 1985, he was named Pastor of Saint Anne Church in Fairview and in 1995, he was named Pastor of Holy Cross Church in Holyoke. In 1996, he was named Dean of the Greater Holyoke Deanery and held that position until 2004. In July of 2011, Father Galipeau retired as Pastor of Holy Cross Church in Holyoke and moved to his home that he loved at Pine Valley Plantation in Belchertown. Father Galipeau was a Knight of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem and was the longtime Chaplain of the Fairview Council 4044 Knights of Columbus in Chicopee where he also served as the Faithful Friar for several years of the Fairview Assembly 2670 Fourth Degree of the Knights of Columbus. In addition, Father Galipeau previously served as the Faithful Friar of the Archbishop Williams Assembly of the Fourth Degree and was the Knights of Columbus State Chaplain in Massachusetts from 2000 until 2009. He leaves his loving sister and brother-in-law, Gloria M. LaMarche and her husband, Raymond, of Chicopee; his cherished nephews, Retired United States Air Force Colonel Raymond E. LaMarche, Jr. and his wife, Karen, of Havre de Grace, MD and Gerard R. LaMarche and his wife, Lesley, of Southampton; his cherished grand nephews and grand nieces, United States Army Captain Garrett LaMarche and his wife, Harmony, Ethan LaMarche, Kerri LaMarche, Brigette LaMarche, Eric LaMarche and Andrew LaMarche; and his dear godmother, Cecile A. Hanley of Woonsocket, RI. Father Galipeau will Lie in State at Our Lady of the Cross Church, 23 Sycamore Street, Holyoke, MA 01040 on Thursday, January 31, 2013 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. followed by a Prayer Vigil Service at 7 p.m. A Pontifical Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated by the Most Reverend Timothy A. McDonnell, Bishop of Springfield, at Our Lady of the Cross Church in Holyoke on Friday morning, February 1, 2013 at 10 a.m. His burial will follow the Mass at Notre Dame Cemetery, 63 Lyman Street, South Hadley, MA 01075. His funeral arrangements have been entrusted to the St. Pierre - Phaneuf Fairview Chapels, (413-533-3307), 506 Britton Street, Chicopee, MA 01020. His family has requested that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations be made in his memory to the Fairview Council 4044 Knights of Columbus Scholarship Fund, 1599 Memorial Drive, Chicopee, MA 01020. For more details, please visit:www.stpierrephaneuf.com