By Ana Rodriguez Soto - The Archdiocese of Miami
MIAMI � �Larry�s Ladies� will miss his easy laugh and quick quips. So will the people of St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish in Pembroke Pines, where Msgr. Laurence Conway ministered since his retirement in 1999.An archdiocesan priest who was about to mark 52 years of ordination, Msgr. Conway died May 13, never having fully recovered from heart surgery. He was 77.
�When he�d come in, you could just feel the energy level because you�d never know what wisecrack would come out of his mouth,� said Father Jeff McCormick, pastor of St. Maximilian. �He had a terrific sense of humor, a very good way with the people. A lot of people are going to miss him in the confessional.�
�He was a true supporter of the women of the churches in the archdiocese, and was there for us in good times and in bad, in happy and sad,� said Barbara Asfendis, president of the Miami Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women. �We were proud to be called �Larry�s Ladies� and will always have a place for him in our hearts.�
Photographer: FILE PHOTO
Msgr. Lawrence Conway
�He was not only our spiritual moderator, but a mentor and friend to the women of council,� Asfendis said. �He travelled to the Florida Council of Catholic Women board meetings and conferences, and the National Council of Catholic Women conventions. There are many from around the state of Florida and even from around the United States who have fond memories of �Father Larry�.�
Msgr. Conway was the first priest to be ordained for the Archdiocese of Miami after the diocese was created in 1958. Then Bishop Coleman F. Carroll ordained him at St. Mary Cathedral on June 20, 1959.
Raised in Sebring, Fla., Msgr. Conway had started out studying for the Diocese of St. Augustine, which at that time covered nearly all of Florida. He studied at the Seminary of St. Charles and St. Mary in Baltimore and the American College at the University of Louvain in Belgium, then served as associate pastor at St. John the Apostle in Hialeah, St. Brendan in Miami and St. Mary Cathedral.
While serving as administrator of St. George in Fort Lauderdale from 1964 to 1967, he oversaw the construction of the church building. He was administrator of St. Ann Parish in Naples from 1968 to 1971, when he was named pastor of St. Anthony in Fort Lauderdale. He was there until 1980, when he became pastor of St. Mary Magdalen in Sunny Isles, from where he retired in 1999.
Msgr. Conway also served as spiritual director of the archdiocesan Guild for the Blind from 1963 to 1968, an early incarnation of today�s Ministry to the Deaf and Disabled. Throughout his years as a priest he was involved with Scouting, the Archdiocesan Union of Catholic Laymen and the Catholic Service Bureau (now Catholic Charities).
In June 1999, he was given the title of monsignor � just one month after his retirement.
�Among the clergy, religious and laity alike, it is evident how significant Msgr. Conway has been to them and how much they have loved him in return for his faithful priestly service, guidance and dedication,� said Father Chanel Jeanty, chancellor for canonical affairs, in an e-mail to priests announcing Msgr. Conway�s death.
The viewing will take place Wednesday, May 18, from 4 to 8 p.m., at St. Maximilian Kolbe, 701 North Hiatus Road, Pembroke Pines, with a prayer service beginning at 7:30 p.m. The funeral Mass will take place Thursday, May 19, at 10 a.m. at St. Mary Cathedral, 7525 N.W. Second Ave., Miami, with Archbishop Thomas Wenski presiding.
Msgr. Conway is survived by his older brother, Charles, a twin sister, Margaret Mercure, another sister, Mary Vorisek, and many nieces and nephews. He will be buried at Pine Crest Cemetery in Sebring on Monday, May 23. In his memory, the family suggests donations to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, P.O. Box 3580, Sebring, FL.
