WORCESTER – Reverend Norman A. Meiklejohn, A.A., 94, died Sunday, March 5, 2023 in the Rose Monahan Hospice Home after a period of declining health.
Besides his fellow Assumptionist priests and brothers, he leaves several first cousins including Rosemarie Merrill and Elizabeth “Betty” Fish.
He was born on May 18, 1928 in Somersworth, NH, one of the 13 children of William and Adiana (Fortier) Meiklejohn. He was an alumnus of Assumption Preparatory School and Assumption College. After completing a Licentiate in Sacred Theology at the Angelicum in Rome, Fr. Norman pursued further studies at Georgetown and at Columbia University, where he received his Ph.D. in Latin American Studies.
He entered the novitiate in Quebec in 1948 and professed first vows the next year. He made perpetual vows on May 14, 1953 to the then superior general, Rev. Wilfred Dufault, A.A. He was ordained to the priesthood in Rome on December 18, 1954 by Cardinal Micara.
His apostolic work included work at Assumption University, including assignments as Dean of Students, Director of the Evening College, Professor in the History Department and Trustee. For 8 years, he conducted research as a Maryknoll Priest Associate in Peru, and from 1986-1999 he served as the chaplain to the diplomatic community in Moscow, the last in a long line of American Assumptionists in that assignment.
During his later years, Fr. Norman was active on campus as a participant in theatre productions and a mainstay in the WISE program. He was also a docent in the Russian Icon Museum in Clinton.
His funeral will be held on Friday, March 10 at 10:00 AM in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit, 512 Salisbury Street, with the Very Reverend Dennis Gallagher, A.A., Provincial of the North American Province as the main celebrant. Burial will be in Saint Anne’s Cemetery, Fiskdale. A time of visitation will be held from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM in the chapel, prior to the Mass. Donations in his name may be made to the Assumptionist Retirement Fund, 330 Market Street, Brighton, MA 02135-2100. Arrangements are under the direction of Sitkowski, Malboeuf & Hickey Funeral Home, 340 School Street, Webster.