Fr. LeRoy Moreeuw, C.PP.S., 87, died on June 23, 2024 at 8:17 p.m., at Henry Ford Macomb Hospital, Detroit. He had been in failing health.
Fr. Moreeuw was born on October 15, 1936, in Detroit, to Everest and Virginia G. (Steiner) Moreeuw. He entered the Missionaries of the Precious Blood St. Mary’s Novitiate on August 24, 1963, and was ordained on May 18, 1968.
After his ordination, Fr. Moreeuw served for four years at Brunnerdale Seminary in Canton, Ohio as an instructor. From August 1972 to July 1975, he served as associate pastor at St. Peter Church in Harper Woods, MI. From 1975 to 1982, he served as associate pastor at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Cleveland. From July 1982 to July 1983, Fr. Moreeuw served as formation director at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.
In 1983, Fr. Moreeuw was appointed pastor of the Precious Blood Church in Ft. Wayne, IN. In May 1986, he was elected to the congregation’s senate. In July 1994, he took a sabbatical and was a member of the Jesuit Retreat Team while residing at the Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Cleveland. In July 1996, Fr. Moreeuw was named pastor of the Our Lady of Good Counsel.
In 2010, he took semi-retirement and served as sacramental assistant at the Old St. Mary’s Church in Detroit.
Fr. Patrick Gonyeau, a friend of Fr. LeRoy’s had this to say about him: “Fr. Moreeuw was a lifelong student and disciple, deeply passionate about God and the Catholic faith. He was always hungry to learn more, to pray more and to share more. Compassionate toward God’s broken people, Fr. Moreeuw was a spiritual director for years and was known to be a tender-hearted confessor. “
Down-to-earth, Fr. Moreeuw had a good sense of humor and could laugh at himself.
He loved being a Missionary of the Precious Blood, and also maintained his roots with his family and with his beloved neighborhood in Detroit. In his role as a senior associate at his home parish, all those things coalesced, and he served the parish faithfully until he neared the end of his long life. The Eucharist was at the center of his life as a priest. As a close friend noted, he lived and died for Jesus.
He is survived by his sister Nancy (David) Bialy, Dearborn Heights, MI, brother-in-law James Roland, Grosse Pointe Woods, MI, as well as several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his sister Suzanne Roland.
A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 2, 2024 at Old St. Mary’s Church, 646 Monroe Avenue, Detroit, with the Very Reverend Jeffrey Kirch, C.PP.S., presiding and Fr. Tony Fortman, C.PP.S., as homilist. Burial is scheduled for Tuesday, July 2, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. at Mt. Olivet Cemetery (17100 Van Dyke Avenue, Detroit, MI, 48234).
Viewing will be held at Old St. Mary’s Catholic Church (646 Monroe Avenue, Detroit, MI 48226) on Monday, July 1, 2024, from 3 – 7 p.m. and 9:30 a.m. until the time of the Mass on Tuesday, July 2, 2024. A funeral luncheon will take place prior to burial.
Memorial donations may be made to the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, United States Province