They also recited the Lord’s Prayer and sang Ave Maria according to the Valley Tribune.
By all accounts, O’Connell was respected and loved by the community. On Sunday he was remembered for his thick Irish accent and kindness.
He was a priest for 45 years. And was known affectionately as Bishop Dave.
In 1953, Bishop Dave was born in Ireland. And educated at All Hallows College in Dublin.
He was ordained as a priest in 1979. And served as an associate pastor in several U.S. parishes. In 2015, Pope Francis named him an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
O’Connell was currently serving as Chairman of the Interdiocesan Southern California Immigration Task Force. And in that role coordinated the Church’s response to immigrant families from Central America.
Community was shocked by the death
Jose H Gomez, an archbishop with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, released a statement describing O’Connell’s 45 years with the Catholic Church.
“He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor and the immigrant, and he had a passion for building a community where the sanctity and dignity of every human life was honored and protected.”
