Parishioners mourn loss

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE — Hundreds of people filled the Holy Family Catholic Church Tuesday for a somber farewell to Msgr. Arthur Lirette, the pastor who served them for 21 years in service and retirement.

Lirette died June 26 at 82 of an intestinal condition.

In death, he drew a packed sanctuary of those who had been affected by what many described as his very direct, or even “cranky,” disposition.

“He was a little on the cranky side, but in a good way,” said Araceli Garcia, a parishioner at the church. “He just made good sense.”

It was that tough-love approach to life’s problems that helped Garcia and her family the most, she said. Returning for mass on Sunday will not be the same, she said.

Sitting in the first few pews before the funeral began, Lirette’s nieces, Estella Villana and Beth Lirette, said the outpouring of support was fit for a man who had dedicated his life to serving others.

“I’m not surprised,” Villana said. “He was well-loved.”

He was also well-respected by his colleagues, as evidenced by commendations given by several bishops.

Arthur Lirette’s long history in the church started when he was ordained in 1949.

His first assignment was at St. Ignatius in Los Angeles from 1949 to 1951. He then served at several churches in the area before landing at Holy Family in 1974, where he remained as pastor until retiring as pastor emeritus in 1995.

“Art was someone who could get things done,” Bishop Gerald Wilkerson told the crowded church.

During his time at Holy Family, Arthur Lirette oversaw an elementary school and high school campus, as well as the completion of a new rectory and parish offices.

“He undertook the challenge with vigor and passion,” said Father Joseph Shea, current pastor for Holy Family.

Arthur Lirette also served as chaplain for the Glendale Police Department.

Even after his retirement, Arthur Lirette’s steadfast counseling of his peers and willingness to continue to serve the church made him a “priest among priests,” Wilkerson said, someone parishioners should strive to imitate.

Although the loss of such a force at the church would no doubt be felt in a community that has grown accustomed to his presence, Wilkerson said death is not a separation.

“It brings us into an even more intimate unity with those that came before us,” he said.

Still, as Arthur Lirette’s casket recessed back out of the church — flanked by the Glendale Police Color Guard and officers for the Catholic men’s society Knights of Columbus — Temie Lehman said her loss would be long felt.

She moved to Kansas 15 years ago after working as a teacher at Holy Family High School. Over that time, she has come back to Glendale twice a year to visit, and each time she and the monsignor have caught up over breakfast, she said.

“He kept me informed,” Lehman said. “He was kind of the grandfather I never got to know.”