Obituary of Father Norman Choate

It is with great sadness that the Congregation of the Resurrection announces the death of Father Norman Lawrence Choate on July 3, 2011 due to heart failure and the onset of cancer. He was in his 80th year and his 52nd year of religious life. Fr. Choate, son of the late Lawrence and Loretta Choate, (nee Chisholm), was born in Taunton, Mass. on August 16, 1931. Fr. Choate is survived by his brother Allen, sister-in-law Barbara and their family. On September 8, 1959, Fr. Norm professed his first vows in the Congregation of the Resurrection. On March 30, 1963, he was ordained to the priesthood in St. Louis, Mo. Fr. Norm began his religious ministry as a lecturer in sociology and chaplain at St. Jerome's University in 1963. In 1967, Fr. Norm returned to the U.S. and continued his graduate studies, as well as teaching a course at the University of Illinois in Champagne, Ill. In 1969, he became a research associate at the Centre for Applied Research in the Apostolate in Washington D.C., and later became the Assistant Director of Research. In 1975, Fr. Norm returned to St. Jerome's University as Chaplain. From 1979 to 1989 he was President of St. Jerome's, and at the completion of his term he was granted an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of Waterloo for his outstanding service to both SJU and the U. of W. He then began parish ministry at various parishes of the Congregation in Australia, in Kitchener, Ontario, in Montgomery, AL, in Louisville, KY, and lastly in Ruskin, Florida. In 2003, Fr. Norm retired to North Fort Myers, Florida. He continued his pastoral ministry by assisting the local parish on weekends. Fr. Norm was a visionary and had an adventurous spirit, which enabled him to touch the lives of many people during his life of faithful service. There was a Mass of Christian Burial at St. Therese Church, North Fort Myers, FL on Thursday, July 7, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. The V. Rev. Sam Restivo, CR was the presider and homilist. Cremation followed. There will be a Service of Remembrance at St. Francis Church, 49 Blueridge Avenue, Kitchener on Wednesday, July 13th at 11:00 a. m. V. Rev. Sam Restivo, CR will be the presider, and Rev. Jim Donohue, CR will be the homilist. Interment of the cremated remains will take place at the Resurrectionist burial plot at Mount Hope Cemetery in Kitchener, Ontario after the service and gathering at St. Francis Church. Visitation for Fr. Choate took place at the Church in Florida prior to the Mass of Christian Burial. There will be no visitation in the K-W area. Donations in Fr. Choate's memory may be made to the Formation or Retirement Fund of the Congregation of the Resurrection, 265 Westmount Road North, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G7, or arranged through the Erb & Good Funeral Home, Waterloo, www.erbgood.com or 519-745-8445.