LA VALLE — A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Holy Family Catholic Church, 310 Bluff St., La Valle, on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016, at 11 a.m. for Fr. Lorin Bowens, 68, who died on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015.
Fr. Michael Resop, pastor of St. Luke Parish in Plain and St. John the Evangelist Parish in Spring Green, will be the celebrant of the Mass with Fr. Raymond Dischler as homilist.
A visitation at Holy Family Catholic Church will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 5, from 10 a.m. until the start of the Mass.
A funeral luncheon will follow the Mass and take place at Holy Family Catholic Parish in La Valle. A private burial will take place at a later time following the Mass at Our Lady of the Fields Chapel Cemetery.
Father Bowens died at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison. He was born on August 31, 1947, in Antigo, Wis., and is predeceased by his parents, Lloyd and DeLores (Krubsack) Bowens. He is survived by his sister, LuAnne Bowens, McFarland.
After completing elementary education at St. Hyacinth School, Antigo; St. Henry School, Watertown; and Sacred Hearts School, Sun Prairie, Father Bowens attended Queen of Apostles High School Seminary in Madison. He then attended Holy Name Seminary and Edgewood College in Madison and completed his philosophy studies.
Father Bowens also attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. He subsequently received a Bachelor of Divinity (theology) degree from St. Francis de Sales Seminary in St. Francis, Wis.
He was ordained a priest by Bishop Cletus F. O’Donnell on May 24, 1974, at St. Raphael Cathedral, Madison.
Father Bowens served the Diocese of Madison as a parochial vicar at St. Luke Parish, Plain; St. Dennis Parish, Madison; and St. John the Baptist Parish, Jefferson. He served as pastor at St. Boniface Parish, Lime Ridge; Holy Family Parish, La Valle; and St. Patrick Parish, Loreto. He served as priest co-moderator of the Madison Diocesan Council of Catholic Women.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Olbrich Gardens and may be directed to Olbrich Botanical Society, Inc., by contacting Ashlyn Mehlhaff at 608-246-4716 or amehlhaff@cityofmadison.com
For the on-line obituary/guestbook at Ryan Funeral Home, visit www.ryanfuneralservice.com