PROVIDENCE — Surrounded by his close friends, his brother priests, and members of Rhode Island’s Latino community, Father Raymond Tetrault, 87, died on January 3, 2023, two days shy of his 88th birthday.
Raised in the Lippitt Hill neighborhood by Conrad and Elizabeth Carroll Tetrault. Father Raymond was one of five children. He is survived by his brother Joseph and his wife, Maria of Glastonbury, CT. He was predeceased by his sister Irene Meenagh of Coventry and two brothers, Conrad of Costa Mesa, CA, and Leon of Cumberland. He has many nieces and nephews: Robert Tetrault, Dawn Sather, Lynn Winstead, and Sharon Lepore, all in Southern California. Stephen Meenagh of Coventry, Suzanne Christensen of Boston, and Leslie Christenson of New Hampshire. He has 10 grand and great grand nieces and nephews.
Father Ray’s early education began at the Holy Name School in Providence, followed by La Salle Academy, Our Lady of Providence Seminary, and the University of Louvain in Belgium, where he was ordained in 1960.
Father Ray’s ministry as an ordained priest was wide-reaching. He was a teacher of English and algebra at the high school seminary. He became superior and Novice Master of the “Brothers of Our Lady of Providence,” a newly formed society in the diocese committed to working with the poor and the increasing number of new immigrants in the city.
Father Raymond had a 50-year ministry at St. Michael’s Church in Providence, a ministry that addressed the needs of the poor, especially immigrants. His ministry with Latino immigrants led him to join them in their struggle for justice in American society. His embrace of the principles of non-violence, of living a life of peace and embracing justice became the foundation of his life.
A man of simple needs but of great and profound ideas, Father Raymond was in awe of the unity of all creation. He cherished the environment and found simple pleasure in working in his garden, feeding the birds outside his window, and nurtured the lemon tree that grew there. As a painter, he shared his vision of nature and of the suffering people of the world.
Bishop Thomas J. Tobin celebrated a Concelebrated Mass of Christian Burial for Father Tetrault at Blessed Sacrament Church on Saturday, Jan. 7, followed by burial in St. Joseph’s Cemetery in West Greenwich.
Donations to Pax Christi USA, 415 Michigan Ave. NE, Washington, D.C., 20017 would enable Father Ray’s commitment to peace and justice to continue.
