Amidst the joy and happiness of their Easter Day celebrations the Pro-Cathedral Parish of St Augustine of Canterbury, Painters Forstal, Nr Faversham, Kent, received the extremely sad news of the sudden and unexpected death, at home, on Easter Morning, of their former Assistant Curate and Parish Deacon, Richard Mulholland, aged only 41.
Bishop Mead, who was told by telephone after the morning service, announcing the sad news, wrote:
Jesus said, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. (John 11: 25-26)
This Easter Day afternoon, just after I had celebrated the joyful morning Paschal Mass and was preparing to leave Church, I had a phone call informing me of the totally unexpected and extremely sad news that my friend and former Parish Deacon, Richard Mulholland, died that morning, aged 41. His death was sudden and totally unexpected. Although this has to be confirmed, all indications are, at the moment, that it was as a result of a blood clot.
Richard was born on 15th November 1977. I conferred the Sacrament of Confirmation on him on 4th April 2010 and ordained Richard as a deacon in the Church of God on 21st November 2015. He served as my Assistant Curate at the Pro-Cathedral Parish of St Augustine’s, until July 2018. He attended a number of the bi-annual Provincial Synods of our Church in the USA (when he fell in love with America), firstly as a lay delegate and then as a clerical delegate, and was also the first Manager of our Church Shop in Canterbury.
I visited his wife Debbie and their children Ethan and Hollie, later on Easter Day afternoon. Obviously they are all devastated and in terrible shock, as are we all at St Augustines.
Richard had many different secular jobs and worked extremely hard to support his family. In the course of this work he made lots of friends and has left many happy memories with so many people. He had dealt with some very serious health issues in the recent past and coped bravely with the pain that he often experienced which was a legacy of some of those problems. Rarely, in public, would anyone know this – he often successfully hid it behind his sense of humour.
Richard was intending on coming to Church on Easter morning – but soon after waking up he became very ill. Despite the attendance of paramedics, an ambulance crew and the Kent Air Ambulance, each of which arrived within 11 minutes of the 999 call, nothing could be done.
Debbie has asked me to share this sad news. He will be missed.
Of your charity please pray for the repose of his soul and the comfort of his family.
+Damien
+ Jesu mercy + Mary pray +
+ Rest eternal grant unto him, O Lord: and let light perpetual shine upon him. Offering it in the sight of the Most High.
In Paradisum
+ Into Paradise may the Angels lead him: at his coming may the Martyrs receive him, and bring him into the holy city Jerusalem. May the Choir of Angels receive him, and with Lazarus, once poor, mayest he have eternal rest. Amen.
Roy Hipkiss has established a JustGiving crowd funding page to help hi family pay for his funeral and associated costs.
Click on this link to visit the JustGiving Page established in his memory.