Rev. JOHN E. GRAHAM

GILL, GRAHAM, HORTON

Posted By: Mary Durr (email)
Date: 2/24/2003 at 10:01:50

Rev. John E. Graham

Wednesday, February 19, 2003

Rev. John E. Graham, 91, of Belle Plaine, Iowa, formerly of Dubuque, died Saturday morning, Feb. 15, 2003, at home, following a sudden illness.

Services will be at 11 a.m. today at St. Michael's Catholic Church, Belle Plaine, with Archbishop Jerome Hanus, OSB, officiating. Deacon J.C. Otto will be the homilist. Burial will be in Oak Hill Cemetery, Belle Plaine. The Hrabak Funeral Home, Belle Plaine, is in charge of arrangements.

He was born on April 13, 1911, in Dubuque, son of Edward and Irene (Gill) Graham. He graduated high school and attended two years of Loras College before going on to theological training at St. Mienrad Seminary in Indiana.

He was ordained on May 6, 1944, at St. Raphael's Cathedral, Dubuque, by Archbishop F.J. Beckman. He served as an assistant at St. John's in Independence from 1944 to 1950; St. Patrick's in Tama from 1950 to 1953; and at Sacred Heart in Oelwein from 1953 to 1954. He served as administrator at St. Mary's in Corwith for a short time before being named pastor at Immaculate Conception in Blessing in 1954. He was appointed pastor at Resurrection in Dubuque in 1958, and St. Michael's Church in Belle Plaine in 1968.

He was incardinated into the Diocese of Davenport in 1982, where he served as pastor of St. Joseph's, What Cheer and Our Lady of Lourdes in Keswick until 1985. He was incardinated back into the Archdiocese of Dubuque in 2001.

He had the foresight to build many middle-income housing and apartment units in Belle Plaine, helping hundreds of people through the years to have a place to live.

Rev. Graham gave his life to church and everything he had in service to the church in Belle Plaine.

Surviving are a sister, Marie Horton, of Scottsdale, Ariz.; and many nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews, among them, a nephew, Tom Graham, of Dubuque.

He was preceded in death by his parents; two sisters, Irene and Katheryn; and a brother, Joseph Graham.