Father Kevin Aloysius Penry SJ, a final year student of Parade College’s Class of 1949, has died at Mary MacKillop Aged Care Residence in Hawthorn East. He was 84.

Born in Melbourne in 1933, Kevin was a member of Penry House in completing his secondary education at the Old Bluestone Pile. Pictured here in his final year of ’49, Kevin’s Parade contemporaries included Ron Barnett, Kevin Barham, Grindon Cannon, Tony Ongarello, Patrick McNamara, Maurice Tarrant and the late Peter Venier.

On leaving Parade, Kevin entered the Novitiate at Watsonia’s Loyola College. Through his time at Loyola, he combined his studies in philosophy with those in the Arts at Melbourne University.

He completed his BA at Melbourne in 1960, having spent a brief period at St Ignatius’ College in Riverview, New South Wales.

Kevin then returned to New South Wales. He was ordained at Pymble on January 2, 1964, and soon after served at Riverview as a teacher and prefect of discipline, sport.

The following year, Fr Penry’s vocation took him across the globe. At St Joseph Hall, Union Decatur, Illinois, he completed a tertianship, before studying catechetics in Mount Street, London.

On his return to Australia in mid-1967, Fr Penry taught at St Ignatius’ College, Athelstone. The following year he followed suit at St Aloysius’ College, Milsons Point, as teacher of religion, modern history and english), and as sportsmaster, prefect of discipline and assistant spiritual father.

1969 saw Fr Penry return to St Ignatius’ College in Athelstone to complete a myriad of tasks as teacher, chaplain to alumni, director of BVM Sodality and senior YCS, vocations promoter, director of Parents’ Theology Course and lecturer in theology for Catholic Education Association.

Through the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, Fr Penry served at the following institutions in various capacities;

1973-’75 – Campion College, Kew, Vic.: minister (1973), retreat ministry

1976-mid ’81 – Canisius College, Pymble, NSW: assistant director of Centre of Ignatian Spirituality

mid 1981-mid ’82 – Faber House Residence, Loyola University, Chicago, USA: Institute of Spirituality Leadership Course

mid 1982-’85 – Richmond, Vic.: assistant priest, chaplain to Epworth Hospital & parish school, director of “Christian Education”

1986-’88 – Burke Hall, Kew, Vic.: retreat director at Campion retreat house

1989-’93 – Athelstone, SA: director of “Ignatian Spirituality and Human Growth” for teachers, parents et al. Coordinator of spiritual formation at Pacific Regional Seminary, Suva, Fiji (1992; April-May 1993); and

1994-’98 – Greenvale, Vic.: assistant director of Corpus Christi Community

From 1999 until his death, Fr Penry devoted his time and energy to the cause of Campion House in Kew, as minister (1999-2002), assistant for senior Jesuits and those in nursing homes, chaplain at Caritas Christi Hospice, marriage ministry and ministry of prayer.

A Vigil Service for Fr Kevin Penry is to be held at Immaculate Conception Church, Hawthorn, at 7.30pm, Thursday, July 27.

Funeral Mass will be held at that church from 11.00am, Friday, 28, with burial to take place at a later date.