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Eulogy for
Br
oth r Bre
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dan Regi Ginnity
(April 20, 1929 - February 15, 1987)
Richard Thomas Ginnity entered our Marist Brotherhood from St. Peter's Parish in
Haverstraw, New York. His investiture took place in 1946 and he made his
perpetual vows at Esopus, New York in 1952. Brendan cooked for a year at St.
Joseph's Juniorate, Tyngsboro, Massachusetts. he taught for many years at
several high schools in the New York City area: St. Ann's Academy, Archbishop
Molloy, Dubois, Saint Agnes, and Cardinal Hayes. From 1968 through 1971,
Brendan served as Residence Director at Marist College, Poughkeepsie, New
York. He was also assistant chairman and later chairman of the Marist Brothers
Far Eastern Missions. More recently, he was finance officer at Saint Agnes High
School, New York City.
Father Thomas R. Flynn of Emory University delivered the eulogy at Brendan's
Mass of Resurrection.
"'I am the resurrection and the life .... Whoever believes in me, though he should
die, will come to life."
We gather to celebrate the life of Brother Brendan Regis: to give thanks for his
presence among us, to mourn the separation his death causes, to rejoice that he
has found peace in the Lord, and to renew our own hope in the eternal life that
awaits us all, sooner or later, in God's own time.
How important a name is; it is who we are. Adam naming the animals in the
Garden, Moses "innocently" asking God's name before the burning bush, prophets
and apostles having their names changed as they were sent on their missions -- -
the biblical name was a person's identity, essence, secret self.
Brendan had three names that I know of. The first I learned when I called his
brother's home in Villa Ricca near Atlanta. When I asked for Brother Peter, his
young niece responded, "Oh, you mean 'Uncle Richie'!" Brendan's family meant a
great deal to him. He often spoke of them, especially the youngsters. With humor
typically mixed with sarcasm (that's how he dealt with the world), he loved to tease
the little ones and goad them into repaying him in kind. He deeply appreciated
what his family did for him. I think one of the greatest pains of his last illness was
the thought that it caused them, especially his mother, such anguish.
Then there was Brendan Regis, F.M.S. As a member of the Order, Brendan was
faithful to his original commitment. Indeed, faithfulness characterized his life as a
Brother: having put his hands to the plow, he never looked back. He continued to
do his part long after illness would have excused him from the task. He had a keen
sense of responsibility for the upkeep of the house that he shared with the
Brothers.
Finally, there was Pete to his many friends, both monks and others. I shall ever be
grateful for his hospitality and his deep, deep sensitivity-a trait that no doubt
caused him as much pain as it made him understanding of others. His humor and
sarcasm kept the world at a certain distance- one did not get "serious" with Pete
very easily-and yet he was a man with a heart as big as his Irish frame. Pete was



fiercely independent (the reason for his distancing maneuvers) and profoundly
loyal to his family, his Order, and his friends. The Lord spared him the life of an
invalid, which surely would have been worse than any physical suffering Pete had
to endure.
Pete liked short homilies, so I must bring this one to a close.
Our lives are formed and changed by those with whom we live and work. We help
change them in return. This morning as we celebrate Brother Brendan's birthday in
the Lord, let us offer a prayer to the Lord of life: in thanksgiving for having walked a
while with Brendan and in hope of meeting him again at the end of our own
journey.
Praised be the Lord, whose death and resurrection are the guarantee of our own,
now and forever. Amen. Brother Brendan Regis, F.M.S.
Eulogy delivered by Brother George Kopper at Memorial Mass, St. Agnes High
School.
We come together this afternoon for a memorial: a time to remember. Every time
we go to Mass it is a time to remember: to remember what Jesus did and why that
is important to us.
In addition to doing that today, we come here to remember Brother Brendan: to
remember what he did and why that is important to us.
My task is to say a few words about Brendan and that is not an easy thing to do. I
know he would not want someone to stand where I am standing and say all sorts
of nice things about him. That was not his style. But I am going to do it anyway. I
know for sure that Brendan would want this talk to be short, and it will be.
Many of you did not know Brother Brendan at all. Few people knew him well. For
many of you he was just someone in the office to whom you went for a textbook or
a train pass, to pay a bill or pick up your check. He was someone you passed by
once in a while.
For others he was a colleague with whom they had a cup of coffee in the morning
and shared a few laughs.
For a few others he was a friend: someone they went out to lunch with --- and he
always paid the check.
Simple things. Brendan did not change the the world much. Few of us really do.
History books won't contain his name. Novels based on his life won't be written.
But that fact does not lessen the importance of his life because
Brendan entered the lives of each of us in different ways, and that is always
important.
Brendan was a teacher; he taught different subjects in different schools. But the
real lesson for us to learn is in his life. Brendan made choices, just as we all must
make choices. He was a very private person, a rough, unpolished, incredibly
honest piece of work. He lived his life independently. He did things his way. That
was his choice. We can all admire that honesty and independence. But the lesson
continues; there is more.


Brendan's roughness and honesty and independence were softened by humor and
kindness and generosity. For above all, he was a kind and generous person. In
that way Brendan touched us all. It is that generosity, humor, and kindness that we
must remember. That is the lesson for us to learn.
From Brendan's simple life may we learn that no act is unimportant, no kind word
insignificant, no gesture of generosity without its effect on others. We interact with
one another every day. Each one of us is important to the other. We do not often
realize how important we really are.
The first reading at today's liturgy spoke of friendship. We all know how important
friends are to us. They mold and shape our lives and help to make us who we are.
But there are also people who come into our lives for only a short time, people we
do not know well enough to call friends. They too are important. We should not
waste that short time together. It should be a time of kindness and humor and
generosity. That is the lesson Brendan teaches us.
A long time ago, I was told that the greatest compliment we can give a person is to
say, "I'll remember you." With that simple phrase persons know they have become
a part of our life, our world. So as we thank God today for creating Brendan and
giving him to us even for a short time, let us also promise that, yes, we will
remember Brother Brendan. We will remember what he taught us. We will
remember a very kind and a very generous man.