Fr. Michael Waites originally grew up in the Philadelphia area, and studied in Toronto and was ordained a priest for Toronto.
He was the associate Pastor in my home parish – Blessed Trinity - and instilled in me a love for Liturgy – and Big Symbols. He preached at my first Mass.
After 9/11 it was getting harder to travel back and forth across the Border, and his mother was declining – so he was able to transfer to Trenton NJ Diocese. He retired 1.5 years ago, at 70 years of age. He is living in a priest retirement home – a nice place in Lawrenceville, NJ, called “Villa Vianney”.
Last July he was feeling horrible all of a sudden before celebrating Mass at a parish nearby – and so he eventually went to the Hospital. This was the first time in his life he had been in an ER!
They found a mass on his Kidney and metastases to lungs… within a week or 2 they had removed the kidney.
He is going thru Chemo now. They did some radiation in the new year – because of mets to the bones – in his neck area.
He still looks like I remember him - and he is a fighter! Please keep him in your prayers.
I am very sad to hear of Fr Waites passing. I have always remembered him fondly for many reasons. One was how he would help me coral my then 3 year old son after mass at St Thomas More (Scarborough). My son spent more time under the pews than above them both during and after mass. Fr Mike would get on one side of the aisle as I took the other. We would have to anticipate which pew he would pop up from usually taking us a good 5 minutes to catch him, but it created a lot of laughs for all. Another time he gave the sermon for Passion Sunday. He stood at the pulpit and slowly looked around, said two words, turned around and went back to his seat. I wish I could remember those 2 words as they said so much. The parishioners were shocked needless to say, and pleasantly surprised by such a brief but poignant sermon. Rest in peace Father Mike. Arlene Welch
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