In Memoriam

Most Rev. Harold R. Perry, S.V.D., D.D.

Harold Robert Perry was born October 9, 1916 at Lake Charles, Louisiana. He was the eldest of six children born to Frank and Josephine Perry.

In 1930, he began his studies for the priesthood at St. Augustine Seminary, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.  In 1938, he took his vows as a member of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) and was ordained a priest in 1944. Father Perry was a pastoral minister from 1944 to 1958 in Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi. From 1958 until 1964 he was Rector of St. Augustine Seminary at Bay St. Louis. In 1964, he was appointed as Provincial Superior of the Southern SVD Province in the USA. In January 1966, he was consecrated as Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans, a position he held until his death on July 7, 1991.

Bishop Perry was a member of the SVD for 53 years, a priest for forty-seven (47) years, and a bishop for twenty-five (25) years. Although he was a man of deep loyalty and conviction, he stand for moderation in the turbulent 1960's brought him much criticism and rejection in its wake. He will long be remembered as an advocate of peace and justice and as a man of God.

Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans, Louisiana

Ordination: January 6, 1966

Holy Angels Church acknowledges with appreciation the research done for this page by Father Robert Myers, SVD, former Archivist, Chicago Province, Society of the Divine Word.