Paul Vincent Donovan, American Roman Catholic prelate, Bishop of Kalamazoo (1971–1994) died he was , 86.

Paul Vincent Donovan was a bishop of the Catholic Church in the United States died he was , 86.. He served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Kalamazoo in the state of Michigan from 1971-1994.

(September 1, 1924 - April 27, 2011) 

Biography

Born in Bernard, Iowa, Donovan was ordained a Catholic priest for the Diocese of Lansing (where he had moved with his parents, attending St. Mary Cathedral High School) on May 20, 1950. His seminary studies had been at St. Joseph Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan, St. Gregory Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, and at Mount St. Mary Seminary in Norwood, Ohio. On June 15, 1971 Pope Paul VI named him the first bishop of the newly created Diocese of Kalamazoo. He was ordained a bishop on July 21, 1971 by Cardinal John Francis Dearden of Detroit. The co-consecrators were Bishops Alexander M. Zaleski of Lansing and Michael Joseph Green of Reno.^[1] He choose as his episcopal motto: "To Serve Rather Than Be Served."^[2] He was the diocesan bishop in Kalamazoo for 23 years, retiring in 1994 for health reasons.
Bishop Donovan, 86 years old, was found dead on Thursday, April 27, 2011, outside of his vehicle following a minor accident in Wayland Township. Police indicated there does not appear to be any foul play associated with the Bishop's death. His Excellency, the Most Reverend Allen Henry Vigneron, Ph.D., the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit, Michigan, was the principal celebrant at the Wednesday, May 4, 2011 Funeral Mass in the Diocese of Kalamazoo's St. Augustine Cathedral. His Excellency, the Most Reverend Bishop Robert C. Morlino, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin, was the homilist. The Funeral Mass was also attended by Archbishop Vigneron's immediate predecessor, His Eminence, Adam Joseph Cardinal Maida, the retired Cardinal Archbishop of Detroit. Burial followed at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Kalamazoo.

 

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