Br. Patrick Fereday, OFM, 70, passes away in Wayne, New Jersey

Br. Patrick Fereday, OFM, 70, passed away on July 20, 2025, at Preakness Healthcare in Wayne, New Jersey, after a long illness. He was known as a woodworking artisan who also crafted stained glass. 

Visitation for Br. Patrick will be held on July 25 at 10 a.m. at St. Anthony Church, 65 Bartholdi Ave., Butler, NJ 07405, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. The Mass will be livestreamed on the funeral home's website. Interment will be in Mount Calvary Cemetery.  

A native of Waterloo, Iowa, Br. Patrick was born to Thomas and June (née Jackman) Fereday on March 28, 1955. He earned a theology degree from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, prior to being received into the Franciscan Order on June 20, 1990. Br. Patrick professed simple vows on June 1, 1991, and solemn vows on Sept. 16, 1995.    

For the past 30 years, Br. Patrick had been the head of the maintenance department at St. Anthony Friary in Butler, New Jersey. His encyclopedic knowledge of the friary’s physical plant led him to compile a book of documents to guide future maintenance leaders. In the 1990s and early 2000s, Br. Patrick collaborated with the late Jim "Butch" Struble, custodian of St. Anthony Church, on projects benefiting both institutions.  

In recent years, the relocation and expansion of the St. Anthony Parish Food Pantry highlighted Br. Patrick's talent in converting the former St. Anthony School library into a facility serving the needy citizens of surrounding counties. 

Br. Patrick is survived by family members, including his brother Thomas and sister-in-law Sharon Fereday of Waterloo, Iowa; nephews and their spouses Christopher (Megan) Fereday, Charles (the late Angela Lefler) Fereday and Andrew (Ann Marie) Fereday, all of Iowa; and his brother friars of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe.