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Fr. Casey, when he was known simply as Peter Casey, grew up the youngest of seven siblings in Charlestown, “a little town just north of here,” he smiles. He attended Boston public grammar schools and then entered St. Catherine of Siena’s in Charlestown in seventh or eighth grade.
His earliest memory of wanting to devote his life to God’s work occurred while at St. Catherine’s. After hearing a missionary priest speak at school, young Peter gave pause to the idea, and then promptly told his parents, “I’m going off to the missions.”
Fr. Casey recalls with a laugh, “My folks just looked at me, and they said, ‘All right, but you have to wait until after high school to make your decision.’”
Fr. Casey did choose to finish his schooling first, always keeping the priesthood in the back of his mind. He attended Sacred Heart High School in East Cambridge and recalls one particular assignment that helped him remember his earlier ambition.
“We had to write down what we wanted to do [in life]. So I wrote down ‘Engineer’ because my brothers were all Northeastern engineers. I erased it. Then, I put down ‘Teacher’ because my sister was a teacher. I erased it. Finally, I put down ‘Priest.’”
He continues, “Then I remember it was my senior year when one of the priests in the parish said to me, ‘Have you made an appointment yet for an interview at the seminary?’ …and the rest is history.”
Fr. Casey studied Theology at St. John’s Seminary College and was ordained a priest in 1968. His first appointment was at Sacred Heart Parish in Weymouth Landing. He stayed at Sacred Heart for five years before a brief stint at St. Thomas Parish in Bridgewater, which quickly led to a three-year post at St. Dennis Parish in Westwood.
In 1976, the Archdiocese of Boston called upon Fr. Casey to serve as its Family Life Director, a position he held for 12 years. Afterward, he returned to parish service at St. Anne’s in Somerville. There he served for 10 years until January of 1998, at which point he was appointed to his current home, St. Agatha Parish.
If you were to ask the parishioners to describe Fr. Casey, what might they say? According to the Rev. Robert Poitras, who has been Fr. Casey’s protégé since his ordination in 2005, “A lot of people would say: A great leader, a great pastor of our church… Great leadership skills… One who’s very level-headed, always calm, which helps him lead well in that case… He inspires others to do the same… Someone who’s approachable, definitely someone who’s always present, just always there.”
As the more senior of the two lead priests, Fr. Casey often sacrifices his own limited down-time (one overnight-off-per-week) when urgent parish needs arise. But when he does allow himself free time, he often chooses to “go to the Cape to spend time alone, walking the beaches,” or to spend time with his large family that includes many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews. Unlike Fr. Bob, Fr. Casey prefers watching sports on TV rather than “paying 50 bucks for parking at Fenway,” he says.
And how does Fr. Poitras describe Fr. Casey? “A man of prayer… A good role model for a priest, especially in my case… Someone you can definitely learn so much from… A man who carries a lot of wisdom for the priesthood…”
In recognition of said wisdom, Fr. Casey was recently appointed convener of the Milton Collaborative (of Catholic parishes), which includes St. Elizabeth’s, St. Mary of the Hills, and St. Agatha’s. The newly formed group of parish leaders hopes to find new ways to work together for the benefit of all, keeping “an eye toward the future,” according to Fr. Casey. His involvement with the Collaborative is supplemental to his current responsibilities overseeing the 60+ employees of the church and school, which serves grades K-8.
Consider what motivates Fr. Casey after so many years in the priesthood. Imagine what experience nourishes his continued commitment to duty. He reflects for a moment, then says, “Trying to pick one is so tough. My experience of the people has strengthened the faith that I’ve been given. I’ve experienced people in many, many different ways here in the parish… These people believe. That strengthens me.
“Before and after Mass, I watch the people of all ages coming and going, and sometimes what goes through my mind is ‘They don’t have to be here… but they are.’ (Witnessing that) strengthens my commitment to having been ordained.”
To those people outside the parish, Fr. Casey’s simple message is, “Welcome. It’s a good place to come to know God.”
Likewise, the current parishioners of St. Agatha already know that it’s also a great place to come to know Fr. Casey.
(Tom Roux can be reached at tom_roux@hotmail.com.)