Rev. Donald P. Mulrenan, SVD, veteran Divine Word priest and missionary, passed away Sunday, September 25th, following a short illness at the Massachusetts General Hospital surrounded by family members.
Born in Melrose, Fr. Don was the son of the late Gertrude (Halahan) and Dominic Mulrenan. He left home in 1946 at the early age of fourteen to begin his studies for the priesthood. Miramar, located in Duxbury, today a well known retreat house, was then a high school seminary of his religious order. He completed his studies in 1960 and was ordained at its major seminary in Techny, Illinois, one of thirty priests in the largest class ever of American Divine Word Missionaries. Assigned to the Philippine Islands, Fr. Don worked in rural areas as a pastor, and then began his long association as a teacher in one of the many high schools run in that country by his missionary society. Called back to the United states in 1975, he became principal of a high school seminary in Perrysburg, Ohio before being elected to the office of Provincial. Having been voted in by his peers, he was directly responsible as religious superior for more than 250 priests, brothers and seminarians living and working under his jurisdiction. In 1990, he moved to Boston to serve as director of the Society´s Mission Office in Boston whose main task was disseminating information about the mission work of the church and raising funds for the many needs of the poor and marginalized in the world. During these years in Boston, Fr. Don also worked as assistant priest at St. Joseph Parish in Woburn, close to his parishioners in times of sorrow and joy, leaving behind for many the memory of a marvelously big-hearted man, a man´s man and a man of God right up to the last active day of his priestly life.
Fr. Don is survived by his sister, Ruth McCoy of Florida, brothers, Fr. Richard Mulrenan OFM of Florida, Robert, Kenny and Edward Mulrenan all of Melrose. He is also survived by many loving nieces and nephews.
Fr. Don will lie in state at St. Joseph Church 100 Washington St. Woburn, Wednesday, 4 thru 8. Mass of christian burial Thursday in St. Joseph Church at 10 AM. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend. Interment will be in St. Mary Cemetery, Techny, Illinois.
It has been requested that in lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made in Fr. Don’s memory to the Divine Word Missionaries, for mission work overseas, 184 Beacon St., Boston, MA 02116.