Parish Turns Out in Large Numbers to Bid Farewell to its Priest
There was standing room only at the Parish Church of the Holy Family in
Marlowe Avenue, Swindon as the congregation turned out to bid farewell
to Father Leo Porter – their parish priest for the past decade.
Father Porter had died in his sleep and was found by a group of his parishioners when they turned up for Friday morning Mass on July 30. He was 64 at the time of his death
He had been in poor health, which required a lengthy stay in the Great Western Hospital earlier this year, during which time he had to have a leg amputated, but had been in buoyant mood just prior to his death.
The Right Reverend Declan Lang, the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Clifton, accompanied by 44 other priests and representatives from the town’s other religious denominations, led the concelebrated Requiem Mass for a man he described as “a Swindonian through and through”.
It was an apt description for Father Porter, who was ordained at Holy Rood Church in Groundwell Road on March 27, 1978 and would later serve at two of the town’s other RC parishes – he had been assistant priest in St Mary’s for three years during the 1980s.
Bishop Lang said:” Father Leo showed tremendous courage during his illness with no sign of any bitterness – he accepted it as being God’s will.”
Fr Porter was a late entrant to the priesthood – he was 38 years-old at the time of his ordination and had a varied life prior to taking Holy Orders.
After an apprenticeship at the former Vickers factory in South Marston, he joined the Merchant Navy and spent ten years as a steward on the Orient Line before returning to his home town.
After a variety of further jobs in Swindon, he began training for the priesthood in 1972, concluding his studies at the Beda College in Rome.
The local branch of the Knights of St Columba – for whom he was chaplain – formed a guard of honour as Father Porter’s remains were taken from the Holy Family Church for the final journey to Kingsdown Crematorium.
Peter Foley
Father Porter had died in his sleep and was found by a group of his parishioners when they turned up for Friday morning Mass on July 30. He was 64 at the time of his death
He had been in poor health, which required a lengthy stay in the Great Western Hospital earlier this year, during which time he had to have a leg amputated, but had been in buoyant mood just prior to his death.
The Right Reverend Declan Lang, the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Clifton, accompanied by 44 other priests and representatives from the town’s other religious denominations, led the concelebrated Requiem Mass for a man he described as “a Swindonian through and through”.
It was an apt description for Father Porter, who was ordained at Holy Rood Church in Groundwell Road on March 27, 1978 and would later serve at two of the town’s other RC parishes – he had been assistant priest in St Mary’s for three years during the 1980s.
Bishop Lang said:” Father Leo showed tremendous courage during his illness with no sign of any bitterness – he accepted it as being God’s will.”
Fr Porter was a late entrant to the priesthood – he was 38 years-old at the time of his ordination and had a varied life prior to taking Holy Orders.
After an apprenticeship at the former Vickers factory in South Marston, he joined the Merchant Navy and spent ten years as a steward on the Orient Line before returning to his home town.
After a variety of further jobs in Swindon, he began training for the priesthood in 1972, concluding his studies at the Beda College in Rome.
The local branch of the Knights of St Columba – for whom he was chaplain – formed a guard of honour as Father Porter’s remains were taken from the Holy Family Church for the final journey to Kingsdown Crematorium.
Peter Foley
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