Carmelite Father Niles Gillen, Province of the Most Pure Heart of Mary, died at the age of 90 on May 25, 2022, in Nokomis. Father Gillen served as Parochial Vicar at St. Raphael Parish in Englewood from 2002 until his retirement in the summer of 2012. Father Niles then retired locally, continuing to assist at Parishes, remaining in the area until his death.
Father Gillen was born to (the late) James Gillen and (the late) Margaret (Fox) Whelan on September 15, 1931, in Chicago, Illinois. His given name at baptism was James Joseph. He attended St. Columbanus School in Chicago, Illinois, and Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, Illinois. After graduating from high school, he entered the Carmelite pre-novitiate program in Niagara Falls, Ontario. He entered the Carmelite novitiate in New Baltimore, Pennsylvania, and professed simple vows on Sept. 1, 1951, taking the religious name of Niles.
Father went on to study at Mount Carmel College in Niagara Falls, Ontario, and St. Bonaventure University in Olean, New York, as well as at Whitefriars Hall in Washington, D.C. Professing solemn vows with the Carmelites Sept. 15, 1954, he was ordained a Carmelite priest on May 26, 1956, in Chicago. Father Gillen continued his studies at Fordham University in New York; and at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire before his first assignment in 1957 as teacher and guidance director at a school in Chicago.
In 1961, Father Gillen became principal at a high school in Joliet, Illinois, and in 1966 was named Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Joliet, a position he served in for the following 20 years. Following a 1986 sabbatical, Father Niles was named pastor of a Parish in Louisville, Kentucky. It was in 2002, after another sabbatical, when Father Gillen was assigned as parochial vicar at St. Raphael Parish in Englewood.
Father remained at St. Raphael until his retirement in the summer of 2012. The Parish Hall was named in his honor. Father continued to assist at St. Raphael as well as at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Osprey, which is run the Order of Carmelites.
A Funeral Mass for Father Gillen will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, June 4, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, 425 S. Tamiami Trail, Osprey. Additionally, a wake will be held June 8, 2022, at the National Shrine of St. Thérèse, 8423 Bailey Road, Darien, Illinois, which will be immediately followed by a Funeral Mass. Burial will be at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chicago.
Father Gillen is survived by a brother. Please pray for the repose of his soul and consolation of his family. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in eternal peace.
Father Sullivan was born the second son of Joseph Sullivan and Ruth Keiter, on Aug. 6, 1936, in Newton, Massachusetts. Ordained to the priesthood on May 1, 1964, at St. Michael Monastery with the Passionate Congregation in Union City, N.J., Father Sullivan served for four years in the northeast leading missions and retreats.
Father Murphy most notably served as Pastor of St. Andrew Parish in Cape Coral for 21 years and later founded St. Andrew Catholic School.
Within the Diocese of Venice, Father Murphy was a longtime member of the school board for Bishop Verot Catholic High School in Fort Myers, a member of the Presbyteral Council, Diocesan Treasurer, and then Vicar Forane (Dean) of the Central Deanery (1995-1997) prior to his retirement. In 1984, when St. Pope John Paul II erected the Diocese of Venice in Florida, Father Murphy was a member of an 11-priest committee which oversaw the various activities related to this important occasion. Events supervised included the elevation of Epiphany Church to a Cathedral, as well as the installation of Bishop John J. Nevins as the first Bishop of the new Diocese.
The Diocesan Hispanic Ministries Formation Program has returned with classes starting in January 2022 at several Parishes. The topic of study for these sessions is “The Christian Virtues” and a total of seven classes will be held weekly through Lent. Those who register and attend 80% of the classes will receive a Diocesan Certification.
A Memorial Mass was celebrated Jan. 27, 2022, for Father Dennis Cooney, longtime Pastor of St. Raphael Parish in Lehigh Acres, who died April 13, 2020. The death occurred during the early phase of the global pandemic and while a Funeral Mass was celebrated it was limited by the Parish to just 10 people at the time. Bishop Frank J. Dewane celebrated the Memorial Mass and spoke of Father Cooney’s spirited work in support of life from conception to natural death. Father Casey Jones, Pastor of St. Elizabeth Seton Parish in Naples, delivered the homily.
Father Mattingly was raised in Washington, D.C., and later studied electrical engineering before training at the National Security Agency in computer research before converting to Catholicism. He discerned a vocation to the priesthood and studied at Niagara University in Lewiston, N.Y., and then St. Mary’s Seminary and University as well as Loyola University, both in Baltimore, Maryland. He was ordained to the priesthood on May 18, 1968 for the Diocese of Savannah. He served in Catholic schools and Parishes in the Savannah Diocese before entering the Benedictine Abbey in Pecos, New Mexico where he did retreat work and coordinated the School for Spiritual Directors. It was in June 1990 that he requested assignment within the Diocese of Venice in Florida to be near his aging parents.
The Knights of Columbus of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Council 15821, led by Grand Knight Anthony Hopfinger, presented a dialogue with the Cub Scouts about the Ten Commandments held on Sept. 25, 2021, at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat Center in Venice. The Cub Scouts hiked around the Lake of the Blessed Sacrament to 10 different points to discuss the Commandment with the Knights. Patches were blessed and distributed by Father Lawton Lang, Diocesan Scout Chaplain. A light lunch was provided by the staff at Our Lady of Mount Carmel. All were pleased with the weather, the program, and the presentations.
It was during the 2019-2020 election cycle that Most Rev. Frank J. Dewane, Bishop of the Diocese of Venice, encouraged all to take a Pledge entitled “Civilize It!” for a more enlightened political season. On September 7, 2021, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) relaunched Civilize it: A Better Kind of Politics, to address the polarization in society. Join Catholics across the Diocese of Venice in taking the Civilize It Pledge to engage individuals, families, and communities in a dialogue of bridgebuilding. Visit 
Brenda Dolan, Immediate Past President of the Venice Diocesan Council of Catholic Women, has been installed as President, Provincial Director-Elect Florida Council of Catholic Women (FCCW) Board. The new Board members were installed at the Province Dinner on Aug. 26, 2021 in Arlington, Virginia. This was part of the 101st National CCW Convention. In June 2021, Dolan, of St. Therese Parish in North Fort Myers, completed a two-year term as Co-President of the Venice Diocesan Council of Catholic Women. She was President for two years before that. Several women from the Diocese of Venice also serve on FCCW committees, including Iris Gomez, Legislative Advocacy Co-Chair; Ellen Bachman, Our Lady of Good Counsel Co-Chair; Dolan, By Laws Committee Chair. The current Venice Diocesan Council of Catholic Women President is Josephine Weiss.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane, joined by Father Eric Scanlan, Chaplain of Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School, receives the gifts presented by students during the school Mass held on September 14, 2021.
