Msgr. Cornelius P. O’Leary, retired Air Force Chaplain, died Feb. 14 at the age of 97.
Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on June 29, 1922, Msgr. O’Leary underwent seminary studies at the University of Niagara, N.Y.
He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Camden on May 22, 1948 by Bartholomew J. Eustace, the first bishop of Camden.
In South Jersey, Msgr. O’Leary served as parochial vicar at Saint Bridget, Glassboro, 1948; Saint Rose of Lima, Newfield, 1948-52; Immaculate Conception, Bridgeton, 1952-53; Saint Agnes, Blackwood, 1953-55; and Saint James, Ventnor, 1955.
In 1955, Msgr. O’Leary entered the United States Air Force, attending chaplain school at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. He served in this capacity in many places around the world, including Bermuda, Germany and California.
He received a doctorate in ministry from the San Francisco Theological Seminary in 1980, and a second doctorate in Philosophy in Leadership and Human Behavior from the United States International University of San Diego in 1984.
Retiring from active ministry in 1997, he most recently resided in Riverside, California.
He is survived by his two nieces and their spouses, Sheila and Dr. Christian Heineken, and Patricia and Thomas Maguire; and several great-nieces and nephews.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated last Feb. 22 at Saint Augustine Church, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Interment followed at Saint Michael’s Cemetery Mausoleum, Stratford.
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