Rev. William A. Ford, KCHS
Deceased: 2013-02-28
Diocese: STOCKTON
Seminary Graduation Year: 1982
Father William A Ford, 74, a resident of Sarasota, died on February 28, 2013, at Bay Pines VA Hospital in Bay Pines, Florida. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts to the late William A Ford and Julia G Ford. He served in the U.S. Navy for six years. After his discharge he became vice president of corporate finance at Bank of America and was in line for an international assignment when he abruptly jumped off the corporate ladder to answer “the Call”.
He attended St John’s Seminary in Brighton, Massachusetts 1968 – 1970 and at the age of 43 he attended the North American College in Rome, Italy and was ordained into the priesthood in August 1982 at the Cathedral of the Annunciation by Bishop of Stockton, California, where he served in the Diocese of Stockton at Our Lady of Fatima Modesto and St Anne’s Lodi and while there also served as president of the local Rotary Club, Knights of Columbus, and American Legion. He was bilingual and was a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem. He then underwent training for chaplaincy at Ft Monmouth, New Jersey and from there was assigned as an Army Chaplain to Ft Jackson, South Carolina, where he served until his retirement from the military in 1994, where he received many commendations and metals from meritorious service while serving as chaplain. Prior to his death, he was serving as Chaplain at the VA Hospital in St Petersburg, Florida.
He is survived by his sister, Margaret Pace of Weston, Massachusetts and nephew, Tobias P Ford, of St Francisville, Louisiana.
A Memorial Mass will be held at 10:00 am, on Monday, April 15, 2013, at St. Mary’s Star of The Sea Catholic Church, at 4280 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Long Boat Key, Florida, followed with burial at 12:30 pm, at the Sarasota National Cemetery, 9810 State Hwy 72, Sarasota, Fl.
